Gaining a Gladiator's Spark
by Lunar Mist
Summary: She was a femme of the highest castes, and he was a mech of the lowest. A happenstance meeting, many arguments, and a rare understanding. He may have her spark, but will she ever have his? Megatron/OC Rated for violence, because let's face it, Megatron can be a violent mech.
1. Chapter 1

1) This is a birthday fic for one of my gal pals. Her birthday is on January 1, so she is bonded to Megatron. If you don't get it, go to my bio and check out the birthday matcher my sister and I made while we were bored.

2) This will probably only be four or five chapters long. A cute little ficlet brought about by the careless taunting of my little sister and a merciless bunny that attacked me repeatedly. Enjoy.

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Part 1

4,498 words

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"Femmes and mechs of all ages and castes! Today, we have a match for all time! The champion of Praxis has come to face our own victor, and you know what that means!"

The crowd roared out the answer, "DEATH MATCH!" with unmatched and barbaric glee.

"That's right, femmes and mechs! So, let's start out this match with a few introductions! Introducing the current gladiatorial champion of Praxis, Beatdown!"

A roar rose from the crowd as the huge door at the left side of the enclosed arena rose slowly, dramatically. Boos and cheers mixed together as the huge, burly, red mech stepped out into the arena. Attached to his forearms were massive blades, and he sliced them around in a showy fashion in an attempt to gain more cheers from his fans. The trick worked, but the noise level rose only a little. His military red optics swept the crowd as he walked to the center of the arena, ignoring the dried energon splatters on the ground around him.

"And of course, the mech you've all heard about, the mech you're all here to see… _Megatron!"_

Noise filled the underground arena. Screams, cheers, and chants rose from the huge stands surrounding the arena as the door on the right side of the field rose. The mech that stepped out was easily as menacing as Beatdown was. His armor was primarily silver with a few black and white highlights. He stood about thirty-five feet tall and had a thick frame that would catch the optics of any femme. His fingers tapered down to sharp claws, and his dentas were sharp like fangs. He held a smirk on his lips, and as he looked up, he onlined crimson optics dramatically. The crowd roared as he strode forward in a confident saunter, raising his arms as if he had already won the fight. The crowd soaked it up, feeding off his confidence and sending their excitement back through their shouts and cheers. Femmes called out the Kaonian champion's designation, in hopes of gaining his attention, and mechs called out encouragement, wanting to win their bets. The behemoth came to a stop just in front of the Praxian victor and sent said mech a smirk.

"This will be an amusing fight," Beatdown commented with a sneer. "The quaint little Kaonian winner against the Praxian champion. You have no _idea_ who you are up against." Megatron simply smirked.

"Perhaps it is _you_ who is confused. That doesn't matter, though, does it, seeing as it will be _your_ energon staining this ground soon," the silver mech responded in a deep, gravelly voice. The Praxian was about to respond when the announcer continued with his spiel.

"Now, femmes and mechs, we all know how this battle works. These two metal giants will fight it out until one of their sparks stops thrumming, and the other will be named high champion! There are no distance weapons allowed, but melee weapons are acceptable. If a mech is thrown out of the arena, he is immediately disqualified. Are. You. Ready?!" Another cheer rose, and a klik later, a horn blew loudly, signaling the beginning of the fight.

Beatdown was the first to move, lumbering forward to tackle the slightly smaller mech. Megatron smirked as he moved to the side and pulled out a serrated Cybertronium blade from his weapons subspace. The weapon melded to his arm, and he wasted no time in striking out. Beatdown narrowly avoided the blade, catching it with one of his own. He swung the other blade around and cursed when Megatron spun away, only getting nicked by the sword.

"Stop moving, you little fragger!" Beatdown roared as he swung again.

"You are ignorant and lacking in strategy," Megatron commented as he avoided the larger mech's swords easily. He could tell that the mech worked on brute strength, and while Megatron held equal strength, he would not win this battle with it. He vented heavily as he dodged strike after strike, searching for a weak point on the brutish mech's frame. At the moment, though, all he could see was thick, impenetrable armor. It had been something he had looked into before, having armor that thick. Then he mentally paused when he remembered why he had opted out of it. A successful smirk rose to his face when he suddenly switched from defensive to offensive.

"What the frag?!" Beatdown cried when Megatron started slashing at him, aiming for his helm. Beatdown quickly started dodging, working fretfully to protect his optics, which he was certain Megatron was aiming for. Megatron didn't slow his pace. He threw attach after attack, forcing Beatdown to dance around and move swiftly from side-to-side. It took only a fraction breem for the taller mech's cooling system to kick into overdrive. When Megatron heard the tell-tale whine of a cooling system about to overload, he swiftly changed out his sword for a huge, spiked mace. The mace connected to his wrist by a thick chain, and Megatron immediately moved into action. He swung it around with practiced grace, grinning when it connected with his opponent's chest plating. The larger mech lost balance momentarily, but quickly regained it by stepping back. He dodged Megatron's next attack just barely and quickly replaced the swords on his arms with energon whips. Megatron grimaced momentarily as he dodged the other mech's first strike. He hated energon whips. Energon whips fraggin' _hurt._

"Stop running, you coward!" Beatdown snarled when Megatron dodged again. The Kaonian threw his mace around again, aiming carefully for the opponent's helm, but Beatdown dodged and retaliated. Megatron roared in pain when the energon whip slashed into his side, leaving a huge gash under just under his chest plating that immediately started leaking energon. A lucky hit, Megatron decided as he continued to dodge despite the throbbing pain in his side. He could still hear Beatdown's cooling system, which meant this battle was almost over anyways. Beatdown landed one more lucky hit on Megatron's left leg before the silver mech finally hit his target: the coolant line on the side of Beatdown's neck. Coolant immediately spurted from the wound, having already been flowing overtime due to the heat of the mech's body, and Beatdown visibly slowed down.

"You… you…" Megatron simply stood there with a smirk as Beatdown attempted to form a coherent sentence. The mech slowly sank to his knees before the smaller gladiator. "You've…"

"Won," Megatron finished for him. Beatdown's helm gave off two sparks, and he collapsed forward as his optics dimmed and his helm started smoking. The crowd roared. There was no denying that though Beatdown's spark still beat, Megatron was the victor. To kill the mech would be superfluous, especially since the mech probably would be dead before anybody could assist him. Melted processors were difficult and expensive to fix. Nobot would spend that kind of money on a gladiator that had just lost. It wasn't worth it.

"Your victor, femmes and mechs! _Megatron!_" the announcer claimed, which only caused the crowd to roar louder. Megatron soaked up the praise, smirking at the crowd as he left the arena the same way he came. He had better things to do than hang around this place. With his winnings, he would be able to afford a visit to the local energon pub. He grinned as he exited the arena. Tonight held great promise for him…

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'_Frag!'_ she thought as she looked through the heavy crowd. Her escort was definitely gone. _Gone!_ Either he was gone, or she was lost. Then again, it was probably both. _'Not good, not good, not good,'_ she chanted in her mind, thinking only of the rumors she had heard about femmes caught alone in Kaon. It was why she had hired an escort.

**::Killsprite, respond!:: **

It was one of many unmarked comms she had sent to her escort, a small, but nimble blue mech that had escorted mechs and femmes through Kaon multiple times before. Figures it would be her that he lost track of. The femme waded through the crowd of bots that stood in the lobby outside the main arena room. Some were working hard to get outside to head home, but most were collecting bets. The femme in question worked her way through the crowd until she reached an out of the way hallway entrance, one that people seemed to be ignoring. From there, she watched the people bustle around, idly looking for her escort as she did. Unfortunately, she was rather short, only twenty feet tall, and couldn't quite see over the crowd. All she could see was a large array of paintjobs and optics. She could see the blue optics of those of the upper castes, the yellow of the politicians. She could see the red optics of some military builds, mechs who needed to see violence when they weren't causing it, she thought with a sneer. Then she could see a few sets of purple optics, those of the slave class. She couldn't see Killsprite, though.

"Hey!" a voice called out from behind her. She didn't respond, waiting for the mech to walk past her to get whoever he was calling for. She wasn't expecting to feel a hand wrap roughly around her upper arm and whirl her around to face a pair of furious red optics. "Fraggin medic! Always late! Get going and start repairing! We have another match in a few breems!" the mech snapped. The femme's mouth opened in outrage.

"Why you—"

"I'd watch that glossa, or you might lose it," the mech snarled.

"I will _not _be treated—" The slap may not have rang out to the bots nearby, but there was no denying that she heard it very well as she spun to the floor from the force behind it. She put a hand to her extremely dented cheek as she looked up at the burly black mech in surprise. She could feel the dent with her glossa on the inside of her mouthplates. He had hit her _that_ hard.

"As I said, you better watch that glossa. Now, get going! Start in room four and work your way up. One through three get no repairs this cycle," the mech barked, shoving a first aid kit into her arms as he yanked her to her pedes by the same arm he had grabbed earlier. He shoved her down the hall roughly before turning back to glare at the bots in the lobby. The femme looked down at her arm, which now had dents in the shapes of his fingers, then she looked back at him. He was glaring at her, silently threatening her, so she decided that it would be best to obey. She could have this mech arrested once she got back home.

The trip to the room was relatively short, and she hesitated for quite a while before finally knocking on the door. There was silence for a few kliks before a deep voice granted her entrance. She hesitantly opened the door and stepped into the room. She easily recognized the mech sitting on the berth situated in the center of the room. His huge frame easily towered over her, despite the fact that he was seated on the berth. The armor that covered the lower right section of his chest and his right hip was missing, along with the armor that protected his upper left leg. The femme had to hold back a squeak at the small portion of his protoform that was showing.

"Well, are you going to stand there staring or do your job?" the mech growled. The femme raised an optic ridge and gave the mech a sarcastic look.

"I'm not quite sure. I'm partial to staying over here," she responded honestly. She really didn't want to go anywhere near tonight's victor. There was a reason she had hired an escort: to keep mechs this large away from her. Besides, she really didn't feel like putting up with a rude mech that thought she was a medic. The mech on the berth smirked in amusement.

"I would have you thrown out for that, but then I would be forced to see to my own wounds, and I find that femme's hands are much more… gentle." The last word came out in a husky purr, but the femme ignored it as she approached the mech. She had dealt with mechs like this before. The aristocratic mechs that moved in her circles always thought that every femme alive should desire their company, and they often acted as this mech currently was.

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean I am, does it? You might regret not kicking me out when you had the chance by the time I'm finished," the femme stated with a grin. The towering mech snorted.

"We shall see," he claimed.

"That we shall," she responded sarcastically. "Now lay back." The mech frowned as he obeyed, obviously expecting a different reaction from her. She didn't give him the satisfaction of seeing the fear that was coursing through her, though, as she opened the first aid box. Like every other noble, she had been taught primary first aid in her schooling, but she wasn't quite sure what she was supposed to do for a wound from an energon whip. She studied the wound carefully, barely resisting the urge to prod it with one of her digits. Well, it looked pretty straightforward… Just put a patch on, and his systems would do the rest. At least. She hoped that was right.

"Do you know what you're doing, or are you completely incompetent?" Megatron questioned in a flat, bored voice. The femme scowled at him, though he was not looking at her, staring instead at the ceiling.

"Get off my case, you rude slagger. I'm _here_ and doing something. That in itself is cause for joy," she hissed irritably.

"My, my. Such harsh language from such a petite femme," Megatron rumbled as he lifted himself up on his elbows to gaze at the femme as she rummaged through the first aid box.

"Yeah? Well, I learned from the best," she grumbled, thinking about how dreadful Blackout's language was. Now that she thought about it, her bodyguard was probably going to be rather miffed when she got back. Then she shrugged it off with a grimace. Blackout was loyal to a fault and wouldn't harm her. Lecture her until her audios offlined, but not harm her.

"That was a fascinating display of emotions, medibot," Megatron noted, breaking into her thoughts. She shuttered her optics in surprise, then looked up from where she had been welding the patch.

"Well, you see, some bots actually _have_ emotions, and we don't feel the need to beat down every mech and femme that comes their way," she replied snidely. Megatron growled lowly at that.

"You overstep your bounds, femme," he snarled, optics brightened in his growing ire. The femme shrugged.

"That's what my opiluk tells me, too. Funny how everybot keeps saying that," she mumbled as she returned to her task.

"Perhaps it is a hint that you should take," the mech suggested lowly. The femme flashed him a cheeky grin.

"Now where's the fun in that?" Megatron frowned at her, not completely certain what to make of her. He was about to start questioning her when the door _hissed_ open and admitted two mechs. The first mech was tall and bulky with black paint and red optics. He gave Megatron a hard look before moving to the side to reveal a small white mech with thin red optics and a smirk on his lip components.

"Megatron, my favorite champion!" he crowed as he strode forward. He glanced at the femme as she finished up the patch on Megatron's side, then he glanced back at Megatron before moving his optics back to femme to get a better look as she moved around to the other side of the berth to work on Megatron's other injury. "Well, what a _fine_ specimen we have here," he purred. He didn't expect her to glare at him like she did, though.

"Cut the slag, Highrater. Transfer my credits, and we will be done for the cycle," Megatron broke in, somehow irritated by Highrater's visual perusal of the little femme that intrigued him so. Highrater frowned as he tore his optics away from the white and gold femme.

"I'm afraid you didn't win any credits this cycle, Megatron," Highrater stated in a mock disappointed voice. Megatron snarled as he moved to sit up. The femme immediately pressed down on his chest.

"Nuh-uh-uh! Don't you _dare_ break that weld! It's slaggin' _perfect_!" she snapped as Megatron turned his glare to her.

"And such spirit, too! Primus, what I would give to tame a femme like you," Highrater said in a husky voice before Megatron could snap at her. Megatron growled as he turned his attention back to Highrater.

"I won the battle, and as such, I am entitled to two hundred credits!" Megatron argued. Highrater smiled maliciously.

"Ah, but that's not completely true, is it? The rules were that the first mech to extinguish the spark of the other mech would win. Seeing as you left the arena before the mech expired, you forfeited, meaning you won _nothing_."

"You fraggin' Pit-spawn, creation of a—"

"Now, Megatron! Can you not see we have a femme in the room? Surely, you can control yourself while she is here," Highrater said in a condescending voice.

"You will give him his credits," the femme broke in suddenly. Silence filled the room as the two mechs slowly turned to look at the femme who was giving Highrater a look that only the highest of nobles ever seemed to perfect. The look basically screamed "I am better than you, and you will do what I say or there will be consequences."

"Stay out of this, femme," Megatron ordered, but she did not even spare him a glance, saving her condescending looks for the weasel of a mech standing before her. Highrater, for his part, seemed to ignore Megatron as well, focusing on the beautiful slip of a femme that dare to order him around.

"You _are_ a feisty one, aren't you?" he purred as he prowled over to the femme. "And what, pray tell, are you going to do if I choose _not_ to?" he added as he circled her. She kept her optics on him, glaring darkly at him as he circled her like a bird of prey.

"I'll tell my opiluk about how the circuit leaders are abusing the rights of the gladiators," she responded primly, as if that was the winning blow to a verbal fight. Highrater, however, barked a laugh.

"Oh! Really? Tell me, femme, just who _is_ your opiluk, huh? Some super medic? Is he going to refuse to give us medical assistance for mistreating our gladiators?" he mocked as he came to a stop right in front of her. The femme glared up at him with a successful smirk.

"My opiluk is General Traachon of the High Council," she stated in a very calm voice. All three mechs in the room stiffened, then Highrater relaxed marginally.

"You lie, femme. You have the blue optics of a medic, and Traachon would not let his little creation come to Kaon," he said, though his voice lacked conviction. The femme's smirk grew.

"If you were educated, you would know that blue optics also signify nobility. My danniluk was a Towers femme and a part of the upper-crust of Crystal City, and you are correct. My opiluk does not know I am here, thank Primus, and I hope that he does not find out any time soon, seeing as I left without his permission," the femme responded without hesitation. Highrater frowned then he looked over at Megatron with a glare.

"You planned this! This is all a hoax to make sure you got your credits!" he accused furiously.

"Hardly," the femme said on a snort. "I just happened to be in the wrong place at the right time," she added as she went back to welding the wound on Megatron's leg. Highrater scowled at her.

"You cannot force my hand with false claims," he snarled. The femme scoffed.

"I don't have to force your hand at all. After all, if you refuse to pay your greatest asset, you will eventually lose it. Why should Megatron work for you if you will only withhold his pay?" Highrater's optics widened then narrowed dangerously.

"You will pay for this, femme," he growled as he deliberately dropped a microchip from his hand. With one final huff of anger, Highrater turned on his heel and stalked from the room, the bulky mech following after him. The white and gold femme smiled when the door shut, moving away from Megatron to pick up the credit-transfer chip.

"Now that wasn't too hard. Sentinel was right. I _would_ make a wonderful politician," she chirped with a happy grin. Then she looked at Megatron, and her smile immediately dropped. Anger showed in every part of his expression. His optics were shining a bright crimson, and his body was tensed to attack. His hands were curled into fists, and the femme couldn't help but notice the still-throbbing bruise on the side of her face.

"You little meddling fragger! Do you have _any_ idea what trouble you have just caused for me?!" Megatron snapped, his voice filled with unadulterated fury. The femme jolted and fought the urge to step back.

"I just got you the credits you won," she responded angrily, though she was quivering on the inside. "You should be thanking me!"

"I would have gotten those credits myself, you foolish femme! You think I have not dealt with Highrater's tricks before? Now I will have to worry about how he will retaliate!" The femme blinked in surprise. She had not thought of that. Her attention was drawn back to Megatron rather violently when he rose to his pedes, his massive frame intimidating her without even having to try.

"Megatron, I—"

"You have made my life infinitely worse, slagger," Megatron growled. The femme took a step backwards when he stepped forward. "And for that, I demand retribution."

The battle she had just witnessed flashed through her mind. Strong fists flying, energon spurting out, and the barbaric roars of battle-hungry mechs. Then her mind flashed to what her femme friends had told her about Kaonian mechs. _'They only want _one thing_ from a femme, and they'll take it by force if they have to.'_ Her mind seemed to sputter, then it kicked into high gear.

"No!" she shrieked in terror. She tossed the chip away and dashed from the room. Megatron snarled in fury and prepared to go after her when a new thought flashed through his mind. It would be pushing it, but two hundred credits would afford him a trip to Iacon and back. What better way to gain retribution than by visiting the little meddler in her own housing unit? Then he shook his helm as he exited the room and moved in the direction he knew she had gone. He was not so cruel as to stalk her to her home. Besides, the consequences that would befall him should he be found at her home were a far cry worse than the consequences of her own meddling.

"No! I already told you that I am not a medibot!" a familiar femme voice snapped. Megatron smirked, knowing he had found his little femme and so quickly! Megatron rounded the final corner, and what he saw made him scowl fiercely. Riptop, a mech that ensured the gladiators' health and fitness, was leaning over his little femme, who now sported new dents in her left arm and her right cheek.

"I don't care _what_ you are! You will do the job you were hired for, or you will give us back every credit we paid you!" Riptop yelled furiously.

"I don't work for anyone, least of all, _you_!" the femme shouted in response, and Riptop raised a hand in preparation to backhand her. The femme remained stationary, staring at him as if she were silently daring him to hit her again and promising retribution of her own kind. Megatron was about to speak out for her, to claim her as his own when a deep, resounding voice filled the near-empty lobby.

"I would suggest you drop that hand, or I will be forced to cut it off," that deep voice stated, his voice filled with dark promise.

"Fraaag," the femme groaned, sagging against the wall as her attention moved completely from the mech threatening her to the mech that was walking into the hallway, headed in her direction. The mech was large, easily as tall as Megatron, and he had the red optics of a military mech. Bulky armor covered his frame, and six copter blades hung from his back. He walked like a mech with a mission, and Megatron couldn't help but feel his battle subroutes online as he watched the bulky mech approach his femme.

"How did you find me, Blackout?" the femme demanded. The helicopter smirked.

"A mech by the name of Killsprite sent me a datapacket. Gladiator pit fights, Novashine? Honestly? If you wanted to see violence so much, I could have taken you down to the pits of Iacon. We _do_ have our own underground circuit," the bigger bot responded.

"Who the frag are you?" Riptop interjected tersely, red optics narrowed at the new mech. Blackout fixed him with an irate glare.

"My designation is Blackout. I am Novashine's bodyguard, which is why I will be forced to kill you if you harm her again," the helicopter responded. Megatron frowned as he remained hidden behind the corner.

"Blackout, I'm a big femme. I can take care of this without your assistance," the femme stated with a scowl. The black and gray mech gave her a condescending smirk.

"That remains to be seen. Now, you need to be back in Iacon in two joors," Blackout said in a no-nonsense voice. Novashine grimaced at the mech before but rose to her pedes anyways, scowling at Riptop as she passed him.

"Fine. Let's go, then," she said primly as she strode over to her bodyguard.

"Good femme," he goaded with a grin.

"Don't push your luck, mech. I'll make you recharge outside," she mock-threatened as she moved out the door with him following her closely.

"Yeah, your opiluk will _definitely _go for that."

Megatron watched them leave with narrowed optics, a frown on his face plates. So the femme had not been lying. He grimaced, knowing that any advancements made on her would end very badly for him. It would be easier to simply deal with Highrater's schemes than pursue the repayment from this femmes for his new troubles. He scowled heavily as he turned and returned to his room.

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So... chapter 1. I'm kinda blazing through this one. :)

Yes, General Traachon is an actual mech, and yes, he's in the Council of Elders. And yes... he's an idiot. Sad, but true. You will get to see his canon foolishness soon. :) Review, my friends!


	2. Chapter 2

1) Wow! I'm shocked by how many people grabbed onto this one so fast! Well, guys, hop on and hang on tight. It's gonna be a wild ride! (My goal is to make this ficlet even better than TaCO, so we'll see how that goes)

2) This chapter may make you blush a bit, but it doesn't go _that_ far. Just keep reading. :)

3) Enjoy

Totally random, but is there anyone else that keeps wanting to pronounce Novashine as "Novasheen" everytime they read her name? Or is that just me?

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Chapter 2

4,575 words

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Novashine scowled as she sat on the transport to Kaon. It was unwise, she knew that, but it didn't change the fact that her conscience had been nagging her for the last couple of solar cycles. She had apparently ruined Megatron's life, and she couldn't help but want to fix what she had apparently screwed up. Honestly, she had not believed what the large silver gladiator had told her, but then she had gotten the confirmation from another.

"_You went to The Kaonian pit fights? Are you insane, Novashine?"_

"_Oh, come on, Orion! You act like it's some sort of crime to attend one of those fights."_

"_Do not use contractions, and it should be a crime. Pit, those fights should be illegal!"_

"_Oh, don't be such a stiff, Orion. It was actually kinda cool."_

"_You talk like a commoner, Novashine. Your opiluk will be disappointed to hear you talk like that."_

"_Orion, unlike you, my guardian and opiluk are not interested in my life. As long as I attend studies and catch a good mate, they'll be proud."_

"_I am certain that is not what they believe. That is what I thought Sentinel Prime believed until I spoke with him on the subject. Perhaps you should speak with your opiluk about your feelings."_

"_Orion, Traachon doesn't care. I mean, I'm a _femme. _I can't take his position in the Council, and I cannot become a leader of any kind. The only thing I'm good for in his optics is for finding a suitable mate of the upper castes and having a mech sparkling to take his spot in the Council before he offlines."_

"_So taking trips to dangerous city-states is your form of rebellion? Is that what this is all about?"_

"_No… I actually… Orion, how do you think the gladiators are treated in between fights by their employers?"_

"_Badly. I have heard stories from those that attend the battles. It is said that the employers are cruel to them to keep them under control."_

"_So if one rebels…?"_

"_Then, they would probably have to deal with the consequences."_

"_Oh."_

It was at that moment that Novashine had decided to go back to Kaon to try to repair the damage she did. She stared out the window of the large hover ship that was meant for long-distance travel. The last time she came, she had used the Metro, connecting trains until she reached her destination. The large transport, though more crowded and meant for those of lower castes, was far quicker, which was what Novashine needed. She forced herself to ignore the stares she received from younglings with purple optics and dirty plating, forced herself to ignore the hateful whisperings of the adults that muttered about her shiny armor, something that would cost them orns of work to afford.

**::We are now arriving in Kaon Docking Lots. Please remain seated until the craft doors open::**

Younglings cheered excitedly at this intercom message. They had been on the ship for almost a half joor now, and they were more than ready to leave. Novashine, for her part, was not excited in the least, feeling more anxious than anything. The gladiator ring was not open at this breem, the fighters all either practicing or on leave. Novashine was praying silently that Megatron would be practicing because she _really_ didn't want to have to search Kaon for him.

The ship shuddered to a stop, rattling heavily as it landed in the docking lot. The doors opened, and all optics immediately turned to Novashine. She ducked her helm shyly as she rose to her pedes, shuffling out the door while the others waited. It was a socially accepted norm: the highest caste exits and enters before a lower caste does. She quickly made her way to the end of the board dock and glanced around, wishing again that she had hired a guide. Unfortunately, Killsprite had ruined her trust in all guides. The last thing she needed was for Blackout to come bursting in while she was talking with Megatron. She grimaced at that thought. Maybe it would be wiser to go ahead and let Blackout know she was in Kaon… just in case Megatron decided to… well, attack her…

"Hey! Are you gonna move or are we gonna stand here all day?" a mech called out. Novashine immediately moved out of the way of the mech that had spoken. The golden mech scowled at her as he strode past. She stared after him with a frown, wondering if everybot in Kaon was rude or if she was just unlucky.

"Sunny, wait for me!" another mech voice called, gaining Nova's attention. She shuttered her optics in surprise when she saw a red mech that looked almost identical to the rude gold one rushing in her direction. He passed her, then suddenly braked, whirling around on his wheeled pedes to stare at her. She stared into his red optics in surprise, shocked by the shiny red paint. These mechs had military optics, yet their armor was so well cared for, a rarity for those of their caste. She continued to study him as he gave her a debonair smile, gracefully moving back to her side.

"Hi. Name's Sideswipe. I dunno where you came from, but I _know_ Primus sent you for me," he said with a charming smile. Novashine studied his faceplates for a second later, noting how the crimson of his optics actually worked very nicely with his cherry red armor. Then she decided that reaching the gladiatorial ring was more important than talking to this mech. She pursed her lip components before walking around the mech in a deliberate fashion to head towards the docking lot's exit.

"Aw, c'mon, femme! You know you're interested!" Sideswipe called as he wheeled over to her. Novashine resisted the urge to grin at his antics as she kept walking purposefully keeping her optics away from the mech.

"Sideswipe! Get over here!" the rude golden mech from earlier called from Novashine's right.

"I'm _trying_ to woo this femme! Give me a klik!" Sideswipe called back, and Novashine couldn't hold back the snort that sentence elicited. Sideswipe turned his attention back to her with a grin. "So how 'bout it?" he questioned as he moved in front of her, skating backwards so that he faced her. Novashine smirked.

"How 'bout what?" she asked in a mock coy voice. Sideswipe gave a rakish smile.

"How 'bout you let me take you out?" he suggested. Novashine raised an optic ridge at that.

"And do what? I doubt there are any… respectable joints in this city-state." Sideswipe frowned at that statement.

"Well, if you ain't here to find a gorgeous mech to spend the lunar cycle with, why are you here? Not exactly the place for a femme of your, uh, status…" Sideswipe commented. Novashine grinned up at him, a mischievous glint in her optics.

"Now, why would I tell you? What if you followed me and attacked me?" she asked in a teasing voice.

"I wouldn't. I don't do things like that. I'm just curious," he claimed, a cute pout on his face. Novashine laughed lightly, thinking how such a look should be illegal.

"If you must know, I am headed to the gladiatorial ring," Novashine finally said proudly. Sideswipe frowned.

"The Forge? You're headed to the Forge? I dunno if that's a good idea," the red mech responded. Novashine stopped, frowning up at the mech, who stopped when she did.

"Why…?" she asked, suspicion in her voice. Sideswipe's frown deepened, causing his optics ridges to furrow a bit.

"That's a pretty rough place, even when there are a lot of bots around to discourage one of the gladiators from pulling something, and a pretty femme like you would be neutralized pretty quickly, and not in a permanent way. You wouldn't be safe." Novashine scowled at that, her upper lip rising a bit in irritation. She highly doubted the gladiators would attack her, seeing as she had already been there once. Still, she indulged the mech.

"So, I suppose that means you won't show me the way?" she questioned. Sideswipe grinned at that.

"Of course, I will!" he chirped, not noticing the angry golden mech moving toward him.

"Sideswipe, if you don't get moving, I'll—" Whatever the golden mech was about to say was cut off when Sideswipe slung his arm around the golden mech's shoulders, surprising him into silence as he yanked him to his side.

"Me and Sunny'll keep ya safe," the red mech claimed.

"Don't call me that, slagger, and just what the frag did you volunteer us for?" the rude mech questioned. Sideswipe grinned at him.

"_We_ are going to escort my dearest new friend…" he trailed off as he looked at Novashine with encouraging optics.

"Novastrike," she supplied, not wanting to give these two mechs her true designation.

"Novastrike! A name that is just as gorgeous as you, my spark. We are taking Novastrike to the Forge!" Sideswipe claimed.

"No."

That was all the rude mech said before he turned and strode away. Novashine blinked in surprise at being dismissed so easily, then shrugged it off. She wasn't in Kaon to make friends. If this rude mech didn't like her, then it was his problem. She was perfectly fine with that. It wasn't like she would be seeing him again anytime soon. She was prepared to walk off in the opposite direction, but Sideswipe stopped her by putting his arm around her shoulders and practically dragging her after the rude mech.

"You'll have to excuse my brother, Nove. Sunstreaker takes a bit of time to warm up to bots," Sideswipe said lowly with a pleasant smile.

"Your brother? Is that why you two look so much alike?" Novashine questioned. Sideswipe grimaced at the question, then smiled.

"Nope. Me and Sunny look alike because we're twins," he stated proudly.

"Stop telling her all our secrets!" Sunstreaker snapped from his position a few feet ahead of them.

"It's not exactly a secret, Sunny!"

"Don't call me that!"

Novashine listened half-heartedly to the ensuing argument, only able to think of the secret Sideswipe had just shared with her. Twins. They were literally one spark in two bodies. The femme smiled at the thought. She had always wished for a sibling to share her secrets with. Instead, she was created with difficulty, and her femme creator was unable to carry another spark to term. From that point, she started to wish for a close friend that she could share secrets with, someone that she could trust and love as a sibling. This position was filled by Orion Pax, a mech that she had spent nursery time with when they were younglings. Unfortunately, his training as future prime had taken most of his time, leaving very little for his femme friend.

Now, she dreamed for a suitable mate, as every femme did. She wanted someone to share a bond with, someone to love. She wanted to have a mech that would love her without hesitation, one who would be unafraid to show his love in public. She had him all planned out, too. He would be tall, taller than her at least, and he would have gleaming armor; not the stuffy painted plating that the upper-crust tended to use. He would be strong, able to protect her and support her. He would want a family, and he would want to be a _part_ of that family, and –

"Nove? You okay there?" Novashine blinked when Sideswipe's voice pulled her from her thoughts.

"I'm sorry?" she questioned, having completely missed what he said. Sideswipe only grinned.

"I said, 'we're almost there.'"

"Oh!" she exclaimed, feeling rather foolish as she looked around at her surroundings. "I recognize this place."

"Recog—Novastrike, have you come here before?" Sideswipe questioned. Novashine nodded.

"I witnessed the battle between Megatron and Beatdown," she responded easily. Sunstreaker scoffed.

"Fraggin' femme picks the best fights," he noted sarcastically.

"Sunny, can you at least _try_ to curb your language around the lady?"

"Why? It ain't like she hasn't heard curse words before," Sunstreaker grouched. Novashine rolled her optics at him then focused on the large building in front of her.

The gladiator pits. Of course, the term "pits" didn't really suit this ring, nor did the term "underground." The Praxian rings and the Taran* pits more fit those descriptions. The Kaonian gladiator rings were located in a large building that had been affectionately named the Forge, mainly because most of the best fighters were trained there. The large building housed four large arenas, and Kaon was in no way quite about the illegal fights that took place there alongside the legal fights. While fighting to disarm or force into stasis was still accepted by the more… sophisticated cultures and the peoples of those cultures, death matches had long since been prohibited, something that Kaonian mechs completely ignored. Seeing as Kaon was one of the most military-populated city-states, Iacon and the Council turned a blind optic to the rebellious city-state, perhaps hoping that the problem would fix itself. Novashine was unsure of that, now that she had seen the bloodthirsty crowd personally.

"Haven't been here in a while…" Sideswipe mumbled. "Nove, stay close." Novashine rolled her optics when Sideswipe pulled her close to his body, not quite sure whether protesting would truly be worth it. She could feel him rubbing circles into her side with his thumb, but she decided that the movement was ultimately harmless.

"Where do you need to go?" Sunstreaker demanded, finally stopping to look—well, glare—at Novashine.

"I need to find M-a specific fighter," she said, cutting herself off before she said his name. These two didn't need to know who she was searching for or why. Sunstreaker narrowed his optics thoughtfully as he glanced around the lobby.

"Well, your fighter would be in the main arena practicing, if he is here," Sunstreaker stated before walking off in that direction. Sideswipe and Novashine shared a glance before they moved after the golden twin. They heard the sounds of battle before they actually saw it. Blades shrieked, mechs yelled and shouted, and trainers snapped and yelled out corrections. When they walked in, they saw organized chaos.

Two mechs fought in the lower left corner of the field, fighting with short blades and swords, while two more fought a similar battle in the upper left corner. The right corners were dominated by four mechs fighting hand-to-hand without any weapons at all. Novashine found herself looking back and forth between the fights, amazed by the deadly grace the mechs held, awed by the beauty and horror that the moves held. Then her optics landed on the two mechs in the middle.

Megatron fought fiercely against the smaller black and white mech, though the smaller mech seemed to be holding up rather well against the larger foe. The mech utilized his size and agility to dodge Megatron as he swiped at him with a long serrated blade, and Megatron, instead of looking frustrated by the many misses, had a smirk on his faceplates as he danced around the smaller mech's movements, dodging the mech's smaller blades. Novashine was struck again by the mech's grace, and she wondered, as she had when she last saw him fight, how good of a dancer he was. She could only imagine walking into a ballroom with him by her side.

She grimaced as she pushed that thought away. She didn't need to be thinking about him that way. Opiluk would not approve of a match with Megatron, a mech without connections of any kind.

"See your mech?" Sideswipe asked with a frown as he gazed out at the battling mechs with an excited glint in his optics.

"Yes, actually," she responded. Sideswipe grinned.

"Then let's get out there!" he cheered as he scooped her up.

"Wait, what?!" Novashine exclaimed as Sideswipe rushed to the small door that allowed entrance to the arena from the viewing area. Sunstreaker smirked as he followed after on his own un-wheeled pedes.

"What the frag?!" was the first thing that left the lip components of a surprised hand-to-hand fighter when Sideswipe leapt over his crouched form with a squirming Novashine in his arms.

"Just tell me which mech is yours!" he called out.

"Put me down!" she cried as Sideswipe skated swiftly around the ring.

"Who the frag are you?!" a trainer demanded when Sideswipe passed him.

"Sideswipe, that's enough!" Sunstreaker snapped as he strode up to the trainer that had been observing Megatron's fight. Sideswipe turned his wheels sideways and slid to a stop in front of his twin.

"You are no fun," the red twin stated as he set the femme in his arms down. She wobbled a bit before rushing to stand behind Sunstreaker, who immediately shied away from her.

"Watch the paint, femme," he snarled, earning a glare from said femme.

"I repeat my question," the trainer snapped. "Who the frag are you two?"

"Why is it that nobot can curb their language around our femme friend?" Sideswipe asked rhetorically to the mechs that were slowly gathering around them.

"I am Sunstreaker, and this is Sideswipe," the more mature brother introduced in a hard voice.

"Ah. The two mechs from Kalis. I have heard very good things about you two," the trainer responded with a nod.

"And who's the femme?" one of the gladiators asked with a leer as he reached out for the white and gold femme.

"She is mine," Megatron snapped as he stepped forward. All attention turned to him, but his gaze was locked on Novashine. "How fortuitous that my little pet has returned to me." Novashine scowled at that statement and stepped out from behind Sunstreaker so that she could properly glare at the silver gladiator.

"I most certainly am _not_ your_ pet_. I am not your _anything_. I do, however, wish to speak with you if you have a moment." Megatron studied her for a moment before nodding.

"Come. Sideswipe and Sunstreaker will continue my battle with Barricade. I will be back in a breem or two, Taught," Megatron stated, addressing his trainer with the last sentence. Taught nodded before turning his attention to the twins.

"Okay, you two miscreants, let's see what you've got." Novashine glanced over at the twins as they pulled identical sets of blades from their subspace and prepared themselves for battle. That was when Megatron put a hand on her lower back and started leading her away. She looked up at him and grimaced at the set expression on his face. This was going to be an interesting conversation…

She forced herself to ignore the warmth coming from the hand—no, claw—on her back. The arena was cold today for whatever reason, but she refused to complain. She knew the mechs in the buildings would be fine, seeing as they had much thicker armor on than she did. Her armor was thin, made for fashion and appearance rather than protection from the elements. It was rare for a femme of her caste to be out in these conditions, so it wasn't necessary to wear such things when she was at home.

"Now, I know you did not come back simply to watch me spare, seeing as you left under rather negative circumstances. So what exactly _are _you here for?" Megatron questioned lowly as they walked down a hall away from the ring, effectively pulling Novashine from her thoughts.

"Compensation," was her answer. Megatron raised an optic ridge at this.

"Really? And just what does this compensation entail?" he asked with a small smirk. Novashine grimaced as she looked down, fighting the urge to fidget. She had no idea what it was about Megatron that made her so nervous, but she couldn't fight the fluttering in her stomach. Still, she forced her voice to remain level as she replied, "I am uncertain. I don't quite understand the… depth of the misdeed."

"I see," Megatron hummed as he led her down a hall filled with doors. She blinked when he stopped in front of the second door to the left and started typing in a code. "It is quite noble of you to return to repay such a misdeed, but I must ask what lengths you are willing to go to in order to repay this deed."

"Anything in reason. I am not a fool, Megatron," she responded with a scowl. Megatron grinned as the door opened, revealing a rather small room. A single berth sat against the far wall, and a desk and chair sat on the right wall with a large shelf standing parallel to them against the left wall. She turned her gaze from the room to give Megatron a deadpan look. "I know what you're thinking, and you're not going to get it. I am not a toy to be used."

"Oh really? I believe you give yourself too much credit, my dear," Megatron stated as he walked into the room, dragging Novashine in after him. The femme dug her heels in, suddenly scared of what she may have just gotten herself into. Curse her foolish conscience! Megatron merely gave her an amused look before letting her go once the door closed. She whirled around to face the door and prepared to rush back outside, but Megatron's voice stopped her. "It locks wirelessly. I paid to have the lock placed in myself. You are not going anywhere, pet."

"Don't call me that," she hissed as she whirled to face him. She did not expect to land in his arms, nor did she completely expect his following actions. He wrapped his arms tightly around her and pressed his lip components against hers in a harsh and searing kiss. Novashine's vents hitched in surprise before she melted into his tight embrace. Her spark hummed loudly in her audio receptors as he tilted his helm, expertly moving his lips against hers. Her spark pulled, and horror and delight rushed through her systems in a confusing and breath-taking twist.

Megatron was her _sparkmate._ Two sparks that were made for each other and completely compatible. Megatron was supposed to be _hers._ The part of her that was hopeful, day-dreamy, and totally girly squealed with delight at this new development. She had found the mech she was supposed to be with! Tall, strong, silver armor, deep voice, able to defend her and protect her. He was _everything_ she wanted. She wasn't quite sure if he wanted sparklings, but that bridge could be crossed once they got there.

Then her logic center broke in. This mech was a gladiator, a mech that _killed_ for _credits._ He was _not_ respectable, and he was threatening to take her by force. Her spark cried out in sadness as her logical side took over. He was not meant for her. He was dangerous, uncouth, and unpredictable. He was not safety; he was _danger._ There was another mech out there that would fit her requirements. Megatron was not him.

"Hmmm, speechless," Megatron purred as he broke the kiss. "I can't decide whether or not I like you more this way."

"I will repeat what I said before," Novashine forced herself to say. "I am not a toy. I will not allow you to treat me as if I were some common pleasure femme off the street. Open the door." Megatron stared at her looking rather baffled, then he grinned.

"I see. You wish to play hard-to-get? No matter. I am not pursuing you anyways. As I said before, Novashine, you give yourself _entirely_ too much credit. I am not here for that. Rather, I have a better way for you to repay me." Novashine watched with mixed emotions as he walked to the shelving unit that held assorted datapads and holocubes. He didn't want her? Is that what he had just said? She grimaced as she fought back the sharp pain that thought caused. She should be happy that he did not see her as a desirable femme. She would find a mech in Iacon, and would leave this mech behind. She should be happy at his easy dismissal. That meant he would not chase after her once she had left.

Then why did she feel like a huge hole had just opened up in her spark chamber?

"This is what you can do," Megatron stated as he returned to her side, a datapad about battles in the First Great War in his hands.

"What? Clean your datashelf?" Novashine asked with an incredulous look. Megatron scowled at her, looking as if he was fighting an internal battle.

"No… I require you to… I," he scowled as he cut himself off and looked off to the right. "I do not know how to read."

Novashine blinked up at him in surprise. _This_ was what he had been going on about? He wanted to read? Then what was the kissing and leering about?

"I enjoyed watching you squirm," Megatron stated, and Novashine realized that she had spoken her thoughts aloud.

"Okay… so you can't read… Why do you… want me to teach you?" the femme asked in confusion. Sure, being unable to read probably made him feel unintelligent… but did a gladiator really need to know how to read? Megatron grimaced.

"I am the greatest gladiator here, yet that is _all_ I am," Megatron stated. "I wish to be something _more,_ and I wish to help the people around me, the bots that are stuck in their positions simply because of who created them. It is impossible for younglings to dream because their caste will prohibit them from ever becoming a bot of influence. The lower castes starve because they are only given scraps by the upper castes. I want to change that. No bot should have to work that much for that little, and every bot should have to work for their Energon. I could make this world so much better, but I cannot get anywhere without being able to read and write."

"I… see…" Novashine said slowly, taking in what he had said. He wanted to help those less fortunate by gaining a spot in the upper castes. She had to agree with his deduction, though. He would get nowhere without literacy. He would not be able to read the documents passed to him, and he would be unable to write the documents necessary to make his plans move forward. However, on that same note, it was _her_ caste he would be targeting.

"There will come no harm to anybot, Novashine," Megatron stated, and her optics met his. How did he know her name? Sideswipe called her "Novastrike," so how did Megatron know hers?

"I do not know if I can trust you, but I will repay you the crime I committed against you," she claimed slowly. Megatron smirked at this and nodded.

"Very good. You will come back here every cycle at this time, and you will tutor me until I am finished learning." Megatron took the femmes wrist and moved toward the desk. He pulled out the chair and sat down before pulling the femme down on his lap. "Now, begin our first lesson."

"O-okay…" she murmured as she took a datapad that she usually used for her schoolwork. With a small sigh, she picked up the stylus and started writing out the thirty Iaconian glyphs.

* * *

**Chistarpax:** Lol. Yeah, he may have his hands full, but that doesn't mean he can't give as much as she can. I mean, if you hold a firecracker close to a flame… ;D

**xxXXHappyLlamaXXxx:** Glad you like it! I love your username, BTW.

**Sunstreaker's Squishy:** Aww! You makes me blush! Sadly, though, I do not plan on making a sequel to TaCO at all. It shall live where it's at. :\ Well, of all the seekers to be bonded to, TC's probably the most stable. *nod nod* Yeah, I am working really hard not to make Nova a marysue. It's not possible for her to be spoiled, though, and you will see why a bit later. After all, she has a chauvinistic idiot father. You shall see that, too. :)

**Link's Rose:** Glad you like! I figure this one will be finished fairly soon. Not gonna be too drawn out.

**Angel897**: Glad you like it. :)

**Lovely Rain Dancer:** Oh, I know! Aren't they the perfect form of angst and suffering?!

**Thebookfan09:** Lol. I know. This was going to be a one-shot, but when the word count got up to 4K, I was like, 'Yup, breaking this one up.' It makes it easier anyways. The scene changes don't have to be as smooth.

I am having so much fun with Megatron's personality. He seems like he would be that rouge-around-the-edges-but-mushy-in-the-middle kind of guy that turns into a misled-but-means-well kind of character. At least in my mind, anyways. After all, I always justify the bad guys and try to make them good. =_= I don't like bad people staying bad. :\

Lol. I was trying to think of a suitable bodyguard for her, and Blackout seemed perfect. It will help me with the plot later on, as well. Glad you like my darling OC, though. I believe she is me in a way. My journey in finding myself has begun via Novashine! Tally-ho!

*Dreadwing and Jazz stare after in awe as Lunar Mist stomps through a jungle, knocking down trees*

Jazz: What the frag did we just unleash?

Dreadwing: I'm innocent. This is somehow your fault.

**Luna Uchiha666:** Lol. :D very glad you like it. I will definitely have this one finished soon, too. :)

**Agent Or4ng3:** Oh, hey! Very glad you like my darling OC as much as I like yours. I think that was the hardest part of this fic (Though not as hard as I thought it would be): creating a circumstance that would intrigue Megatron, because he isn't the type to go after a sweet femme or just go after a femme for her body. Especially at this moment in his life, where he's trying to make something of himself. He wouldn't be ready to settle down so I'm forcing him to notice her. :)

**Sweettea1:** Glad you like it! Updates should come pretty quickly on this one. Once again, I'm blazing on through it. The bunny bit and won't let go. Plus, I got my little sister leaning over my shoulder reading and laughing as I write. :)

**Iceshadow911247: **Very glad you like it! Been a while since I started one and just had at it, no? I think the last one was _A Little Burst of Sunlight._

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*Taran = something or someone from or associated with Tarn, i.e. That Taran energon is better than the Kaonian Energon by far.

See? Not too graphic, no? Yes, Megatron wants to learn how to read. It is his first step to becoming the leader of the Cybertron Defense Force. And allow me to make a disclaimer real fast

**I am not saying that those who are illiterate will amount to nothing. In this society, though, a society so defined by castes, he would get nowhere without being able to read. I mean, would you give the job of Chief General (or whatever) to a guy that cant read or write? No, because he would not be able to know what the news came if it came down to the wire. Besides, if Megatron is to argue with the Council, he will need to have his case down, and other bots are not allowed to read Council documents. 0.o So, no hate reviews telling me how mean I am, please. :)**

**Review, my friends! If I don't have the next chapter up tonight, it'll be up tomorrow.**


	3. Chapter 3

1) Okay, so I am officially dead on my feet. I have sinusitis, and for those of you who don't know, when you have sinusitis, your whole face hurts. My teeth are sore, my jaw is sore, my throat is closing up, I'm coughing, having very strong migraines, and on top of that, Lunar Mist has _two_ pink eyes. Lucky me, right? That is the joy of being me: I don't get sick very often, but when I do, it's terrible. Slag, last time I was sick, I ended up in the hospital... On the bright side, though, as I avoid all things that emit light, I have been able to think up my next plot twist. Ooh, I can't wait! X)

2) It's not Megatron that makes you blush in this one; it's Sides. ^^;;

3)I love how fascinated all y'all are with my caste system. Tell me, do y'all want me to write up the whole system and post it on my profile for those of you wanting to write a fic using it? :)

4) **Quick Cybertronian culture lesson**: Remember that if the spark is covered, a bot is considered "fully clothed". They don't have to be wearing armor, seeing as that was considered too bulky for snobby rich bots. :)

5) Nice long chappie for y'all enjoy!

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Chapter 3

6,384 words

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"Novashine! Nova!" All attention turned to the red mech as he sped through the docking lot towards the recently landed transporter. Purple and red optics narrowed when he wrapped his arms around the waist of a blue-opticed femme, lifting her up as he spun her around joyfully.

"Sideswipe!" she squealed in surprise as she wrapped her arms around his neck in case he accidentally let go. The red mech stopped spinning, holding her bridal style as he grinned down at her.

"Noveshine, I have decided that you are the most amazing person I have ever met!" he claimed with a broad grin. Novashine frowned at him.

"Somehow, that statement worries me…" she said slowly. Sideswipe gasped in mock hurt.

"Novashine, you should feel honored!" Sideswipe claimed. The femme gave him a sarcastically worried look.

"Oh, Sideswipe, you hit your helm during practice again, didn't you?" she cooed, reaching a hand up to pat his helm mockingly. Sideswipe rolled his optics as he moved in the direction of the Forge. It had become ritual for them. She would come on the same transport, and Sideswipe would escort her to the Forge. A half joor later, Sunstreaker would take her back to the docking lot and make sure she got on the ship safely.

"No, Nova, I didn't hit my helm. In fact, Megatron _himself_ said that me and Sunny were two of the best fighters in the Forge," Sideswipe said proudly. Novashine had to hide her smile at that. The twins had grown to admire Megatron, having almost a sort of hero-worship going on. They watched his battles with inner glee, taking apart his moves and teaching themselves how to gain his skill. Her relationship with Megatron, however, was simply business now, something that (illogically) pained her to no end. The large mech had a nasty habit of kissing her randomly, something that she loved but did not understand. He had stated many times that he held no romantic feelings for her, and anytime she asked him why he kissed her, he would give her some baffling answer.

"_I wanted to watch you squirm."_

"_There was something on your lip components."_

"_I wanted to see if you tasted like that fully-filtered Energon you drink."_

"_I wanted to see if you would actually kiss me back."_

It confused and pained her every time he said it, but she wouldn't trade his kisses for anything. They made her feel alive, like she was living underground until his lips touched hers. When he kissed her, she could pretend, if just for a moment, that he felt that pull too. She could pretend that he didn't mind giving her his spark, as she had inadvertently given him hers.

"Novashine? You're being really quiet… It's kinda scary…" Novashine's optics brightened on Sideswipe's faceplates, zeroing in on his worried red optics. She gave him a weak smile.

"I'm fine, Sideswipe. Just a little tired. Iacon has been rather… trying the last couple of solar cycles," she claimed, telling only half the truth. Sideswipe grimaced at that and returned his gaze to the road as he skated along, easily ignoring the looks he and the femme in his arms were getting.

"You never _did_ tell me about what was going on up there," Sideswipe stated. Novashine snorted.

"You mean you haven't heard the news?" she asked in a mock incredulous voice. Sideswipe rolled his optics.

"Femme, we live on opposite sides of the globe. It isn't like I can pick up a newsdata and read up on the latest fashions in Iacon," the red mech teased. Novashine rolled her optics and focused on the road before them.

"I have officially come of age," she stated flatly, hating the invisible weight those words brought. Sideswipe, however, being of a lower caste, had no idea what she meant.

"Okay… so you're old enough to hold your high grade. What's wrong with that?"

"It means I have to getting mated… soon."

"Oh… Well, what's bad about that? Even I wanna find my sparkmate eventually," Sideswipe claimed in a confused voice.

"Femmes from upper castes don't mate their sparkmate. They mate with whomever their opiluk or guardian tells them to," Novashine said in a flat voice.

"Oh." Sideswipe frowned, uncertain what to say. The joy of being a military build was that he could mate whoever he wanted to, assuming that femme was either a servant class or military class like himself. He would probably be able to catch a femme of the trading or marketing caste, but that would probably be a stretch. Still, to have to mate a femme he didn't want to…

"Well, how about this? You and me will mate, and the world will be perfect again," Sideswipe said with a grin, as if he had just solved a great problem like world hunger. I couldn't hide the small smile his offer brought out.

"Thanks, Sides, but I don't think my opiluk will approve of you," Novashine responded. Sideswipe sighed dramatically.

"And you always do what your opiluk tells you to?"

"You have obviously never met my opiluk."

"Nope, and I don't particularly want to. After we bond, you can stay here," Sideswipe claimed as they approached the Forge.

"Sides, I don't think staying in Kaon is going to be possible. My opi would send Blackout on a hunt for me. Pit, if he wasn't so busy with the Energon skirmishes between Tarn and Kaon, he probably would have already sent the mech out to find out what I'm doing," Novashine reasoned, though she couldn't deny that having Sideswipe as a mate sounded rather appealing. She could even add touches of ruby paint to her plating to match his paintjob a bit better.

"Well, Nove, just remember that if your opi wants to bond you off to some fragger, my offer still stands," Sideswipe stated as he set the femme on her pedes inside the main lobby.

"I will," she said on a laugh. Sideswipe grinned at her before giving her a playful kiss on the lips. A low growl sounded from behind them, and Novashine resisted the urge to groan.

"I fail to see why you get so angry when any other bot kisses me," Novashine called out without looking away from Sideswipe.

"That is because you belong to _me_, and nobot touches what is mine," Megatron growled. Novashine's spark did a little flip at the possessive edge in his voice.

"I gotta get to practice. Will I see you at the fight this lunar cycle? You can stay with me and Sunny until the match starts," Sideswipe asked, reminding Novashine strangely of a turbopup that she had seen in a pet shop. The femme smiled at her friend.

"Of course, Sideswipe. It'll be a date," she stated. Sideswipe grinned brightly at her, optics bright with joy.

"That is enough. Come, Novashine. I believe you have a job to do," Megatron interjected, wrapping an arm around the femme's waist to lead her away.

"See you, Sides!" she called out as Megatron led her firmly toward the rooming halls. Megatron scowled heavily as he tugged the femme along beside him, his spark in a strange sort of turmoil. She was _his_ pet, _his_ femme, and he hated seeing another mech's lips on hers. Megatron wasn't quite sure what to make of her. She was above him in caste and education, meaning that she roamed the circles of the rich and snobbish. She was raised to look down upon his kind, even though she didn't speak down to him for some strange reason. She was rich and no doubt very spoiled. Her plating—he said plating because her armor was not thick enough to be classified as such—was clean and brightly painted, which was saying something, as white paint had a tendency to chip and grow dirty quicker than other colors for some reason. The gold paint seemed to always glitter, as if she actually had flakes and specks of the actual metal in the paint, which he knew to be false. The flecks would scratch her finish… at least, he was fairly certain they would. He, never having encountered such fineries, would probably not be the best judge on that.

And her optics. Those emotion-filled ocean blue optics. Megatron's scowl deepened. There was no denying his physical attraction to her, but he knew that was all this was: physical attraction, the same attraction he felt toward the pleasure femmes he saw in the streets and pubs. The only difference was that those pleasure femmes were easy to find and hire. Novashine… she was off-limits, and she had no problem telling Megatron this. "She was not a toy." It was her favorite line, though she never pulled away when he kissed her. Perhaps she knew she would not be able to escape his arms if she tried. For some reason, that made the gladiator angrier. Was that why she allowed him to kiss her, because she knew there was no other option? Did she not enjoy it?

Megatron growled lowly, unable to answer these questions, not able to understand why he was even pondering them. The femme was not in his league, and she was nothing more than a tutor, a way to get him in a position where he could make a difference. She was nothing more than a femme frame with intelligence, and she _meant_ nothing more than that. He would get into power and never see her again. It was what he wanted and how it was meant to be.

Then why did it feel like a huge hole had just opened up in his spark chamber?

She was off-limits. She was out of his reach. Unlike those femmes on the street, he was not allowed to do whatever he wished with her. Perhaps that was what had his interest. After all, Megatron had always enjoyed a challenge, and he had a tendency to desire what was out of his reach. That was what this was all about. He claimed her to be his pet because she would never truly be his pet. He stole kisses from her because they would never be given freely. Megatron glanced down at the femme as he unlocked the room and entered it, dragging her in behind him. Her faceplates were set as she glanced over at the empty desk, then at the bookshelf. So determined.

"Okay, so let's look at that Kaonian text again. I brought the Iaconian counterpart, so we can comp—"

Megatron cut her off with a demanding kiss. Like the other times, she gave a surprised squeak before melting into his frame. The mech gave a low growl as he slanted his lips against hers, silently ordering to respond to the kiss. She didn't, though, to his eternal frustration. He couldn't say why this frustrated him so much, why he wanted her to kiss him back so much. After all, she was just a tutor, a rich femme who pitied him.

But she didn't… He had forced her to teach him… She had not laughed at his illiteracy, but had agreed to help him instead. She had returned to teach him despite how difficult he was. No matter how often he demeaned her caste and her teaching skills, she still returned to him. Why? What did she get from this?

He broke the kiss with a growl, more confused than ever. She didn't respond to the kiss, but that did not keep him from desiring another one.

"Why?" she murmured, as she always did. The mech was uncertain why she always asked. It was as if she was searching for a specific answer, but Megatron wasn't completely certain what answer she desired.

"I simply wanted to remind you just whose pet you are."

"Oh," she said, and as always, her optics dimmed a bit in disappointment, but she quickly hid them by looking away and walking to the bookshelf. She pulled a datapad about politics from the bookshelf and strode back to the desk. She set the datapad down before pulling one from subspace and placing it beside it. Megatron moved to the desk and seated himself, easily pulling the femme into his lap, as was custom by this point. "Today, you get to read to me," she stated as she got comfortable. Megatron grimaced at this. Reading wordlessly to himself was easier than reading aloud, but he knew it was a skill he needed to master.

"Very well…" he rumbled out as he lifted the Kaonian datapad. Learning the Koanian "alphabet" had been far harder than the Iaconian one. Koan, home to military mechs, had extra glyphs to represent battle tactics. Without those, basic Kaonian was made up of fourty-seven glyphs, seventeen more than basic Iaconian, and most of those were the harsh engine revs and clicks that a mech didn't really notice when speaking. They accented the words and could change the meaning from something positive to something negative, which made them rather important.

"When Primus had f…fin…fin-ish…ed finished with his cre…ations, he returned to the ba…battle with his br…broth…er brother. He returned to the battle with his brother. Unicron fought back with his very spark, wanting nothing more than to de…defeat his older si…sibl…siblin-g sibling."

They stayed this way for the quarter joor. Novashine leaned against Megatron's chest, her helm resting on his shoulder as she looked down at the text as he read hesitantly. She helped him limp over a few of the words, but he did the good majority of the reading without assistance. The femme was silently proud of him, delighted by his ability to catch on so quickly. They had only been at this for a few orns, but already he had mastered Iaconian and was getting fairly close to mastering Kaonian, something that kind of depressed her. In a few more cycles, he would be reading by himself, and she would no longer have a reason to come to the Forge. She would no longer have a reason to see him.

"You appear to be thinking too much," Megatron purred, bring her from her thoughts. "Tell me what is going on inside your mind."

"Nothing, Megatron. Just thinking about life in Iacon," she replied without hesitation. Megatron scowled a bit at that, but quickly schooled his features into a curious stare.

"And what do you think of? Do you compare my living space to your own, or my language to yours?"

"No."

"Perhaps you are thinking of the battle tonight. It is, after all, one that will decide whether the twins will be transferred or not."

"I… Megatron, what am I to you?" Novashine asked in a straightforward manner. She needed to know what he thought of her, what she meant to him. Megatron appeared to be taken aback by her question but quickly gave her the answer he had long since been rehearsing in his processor.

"You are my pet, my plaything. You are a femme sparked in luxury who just so happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. You are my tutor, a way to get what I desire, nothing more than a means to my own beginning." Megatron gave her a dark smirk, but that expression disappeared when he saw her face. Immeasurable pain was visible in her optics, optics that were slowly filling with fluid. She shuttered then quickly, trying to blink away the fluid.

"I am _not_ your _toy,"_ she whispered as she leapt off his lap. Megatron watched her as she strode to the door. "I have never _been_ your toy, and I never _will_ be. You have proceeded well enough to continue on your own from this point on. Goodbye, Megatron. I sincerely hope our paths do not cross again. I believe you have caused me _more _than enough pain."

With that being said, the femme walked out the door, the one that had a manual lock from the outside, as it always had*. Megatron stared after her, wondering silently why it felt as if she had taken a chunk of his spark with her. She was just a femme frame with intelligence. Nothing more. A spoiled, rich femme with a perfect paint job. She was nothing important… Right?

* * *

"Okay, okay. You ready to see it?"

"Sides, I doubt your room is that fantastic."

"I bet you'd disagree if you were headed in there for a different reason."

"Sunstreaker, I thought you hated me."

"I do. I hate everybot."

"Then stop making verbal advances on me. I might get the wrong idea and jump you."

"You better not. I just got my finish done."

"Just in time for the bots you're gonna fight to ruin it."

"I'll get enough credits to restore it when we win."

"My, you _are_ cocky."

"Winners usually are."

"You know, if I didn't know you so well, I think I would hate you…"

"Which would be okay, cuz you'd still love me."

"Aw, I'll always love you, Sides!"

"So you'll bond with me?"

"I don't think we're there yet."

"Yeah, cuz there's no way I'm bonding with her."

"… You bond with whoever Sideswipe bonds with?"

"One spark in two bodies, sweetspark. We come as one sexy package of gorgeous mech."

"Primus, Sides. I don't think I want to be bonded to your brother."

"Then how about a healthy inter—"

"Finish that sentence, and I'll kill you before you can even battle."

"She's got a point, Sides. You should stop hitting on her like that. Your emotions are sifting through the bond, and I don't think of her that way."

"I'm not even gonna ask."

"Good, because you don't wanna know. Ew, Sides!" _Clank!_

"Ow, Sunny! Why the frag did you hit me?!"

"Because I don't want those thoughts, you grade-A creeper!"

"Okay, I _really_ don't wanna know."

"Eh heh heh. Oh, here it is!"

The three bots grew silent as the two mechs led the femme up to the room door. It looked identical to all the other doors, the only difference being the Kaonian number 19 that was scratched into the door. Sideswipe moved up to the keypad and typed in their code. The door opened, and Novashine's mouth dropped open. The room was about twice the size of Megatron's, though that wasn't saying much, and held two berths on opposite sides of the room. There was no desk, but there were two identical shelves the stood at the far ends of the two berths. An easel was set up in the middle of the room with an empty canvass on it. A small stool sat in front of it, and a small rounded table filled with paints and paintbrushes of different sizes sat beside the stool.

The thing that caught her attention was the walls of the room. The far wall held a beautiful mural of Crystal City, one that was amazingly accurate and detailed. On the right wall was a picture of a dingy street in lower Iacon, the part of Iacon where the few military and servant builds could be found. Despite the dirty armor and rusty floors, the painter had somehow managed to capture the joy that a working class family unit could have. Younglings played in the street, and mechs and femmes laughed and conversed joyfully in the streets. Novashine stared at the pictured, feeling somehow jealous of these femmes and mechs. Sure, they had to work, but Novashine was fairly certain that they didn't have to worry about each of their "friends" gossiping about them or selling them out to get a higher status in the elite circle. She forced those thoughts to the back of her processor as she glanced at the last wall.

Blank. She frowned at that and looked over at Sideswipe.

"Why is the last wall empty?" she questioned.

"Because I haven't decided what to paint on it yet," Sunstreaker responded as he brushed past her to enter the room.

"You did these?" Novashine asked as she followed him into the room. Sunstreaker scoffed as he approached the easel.

"Unless you could see _Sideswipe_ painting these," he responded blithely. Novashine snickered as Sideswipe let out a whiny "hey!"

"So you're a painter. Primus, Sunstreaker, these are _amazing!_" the femme exclaimed as she moved closer to the mural of Crystal City. Now that she was closer, she could see the small animals and Cybertronians walking toward the city gates.

"Yup! You now know Sunny's secret hobby," Sideswipe said as the door closed behind him.

"Don't call me that," Sunstreaker snapped as he sat on his berth.

"Do you have any more of these?" Novashine interjected, sending Sunstreaker an awed look. The sociopathic mech blinked at her, then gave a grin (which somehow looked like a smirk on Sunstreaker's faceplates).

"I've got a few," he replied in a mock thoughtful voice. Novashine smiled widely.

"Can I see them? Please?" she asked, feeling somehow like a child asking for an energon goodie. Sunstreaker rolled his optics as he leaned back and reached down the crevasse between his berth and the wall. Novashine shuttered her optics in surprise when he pulled out a subspace bag made specifically for paintings. She scurried over to his side and clambered onto the berth beside him. Sunstreaker sent her an amused look as she settled down with her legs crossed and stared at the bag with an excited expression. The golden mech gently opened the bag and delicately pulled the first painting out.

"_Oh, my Primus,_" Novashine breathed as she caught sight of it. The picture was of a star going supernova. Vibrant reds and yellows filled the canvass, dancing over the black background and forcing attention from the other stars and planets around it. The defined chaos held an intense sense of beauty in the many shades of warm colors. Sunstreaker set this canvass down beside her and pulled out the next one. A servant class femme held a small purple-opticed sparkling in her arms. The femme's armor was a faded green and was nearly covered in dust, but that didn't detract from her beauty, but rather added to it somehow. The child, on the other hand, was completely clean, sky blue plating glinting in the soft moonlight as he relaxed against her. A soft smile lit the femme's features, purple optics filled with love and hope for the small sparkling she held.

The next one was a painting of the Crystal Gardens in Praxus. Of course, the gardens weren't the main subject. No, that honor was given to the two Cybertronians seated on the bench in the center of the painting. The mech and femme were very obviously of the upper castes with blue optics and well-cared-for plating. No armor, so they were likely of the medical caste or the elite caste. Their hands were connected, though their optics were both averted on the ground. Shy smiles graced their faces, and bright blue blushes tinged their cheek plating. The plating over their chests were both brighter than the usual bots, meaning that their sparks were shining brighter than normal. Spark call. They were sparkmates, meant to be.

"Have you shown these to anybot else?" Novashine asked suddenly. Sunstreaker scoffed.

"I'm of the military caste, and I'm a gladiator. You honestly think somebot would want to look at the paintings of a red-sight?"

"Don't call yourself a red-sight, and yes, I think they would if you gave them the chance," Novashine responded, feeling as if she was witnessing a crime. The paintings were amazing, and perhaps hiding them from the other bots in the world _was_ a crime. Primus, she would be more than willing to buy some of these. Frag, she'd buy _all_ of them.

"You mean if _they_ gave_ me_ a chance," Sunstreaker replied darkly. Novashine scowled.

"Well, then how about we make a deal? Seeing as you have a fight this cycle, you will be off the next two. Grab your best paintings, and we shall take them to Iacon next solar cycle."

"What?! Are you insane, femme? I'm a military build! Those stuffy aristocrats don't want me anywhere _near_ them!"

"Well, this stuffy aristocrat thinks it will do some good. You have an amazing talent, Sunstreaker, and you should use it to the best of your ability. Besides, wouldn't it be great if you could start painting for a living rather than killing?" Sunstreaker vented heavily, looking wistfully at the mural of the Crystal City. He gave a heavy sigh.

"Fine, but if anybot insults my work, I'm removing their arm," he mumbled irritably, hiding his smile behind a scowl. Novashine beamed.

"Fabulous. Primus, this is exciting! I could fund you, and we'd create a gallery for you, and we'd _have_ to buy you new paints and things, and—"

"Nova, we aren't that far yet," Sunstreaker interrupted, "and I do not want to plan that far ahead until we have gained some ground."

"Oh, okay," she replied with an embarrassed grin. "So what now?"

"Well, I have never come across a femme with white and gold mixed like that. Your paint job was created to accent your optics in a way that I haven't encountered before—"

"Because we've never been to upper Iacon or Tyger Pax or any other remotely upper caste area, aside from Praxus and Crystal City," Sideswipe broke in with a grin. Sunstreaker glared at him, but was ignored as the red mech scooped Novashine up and spun her around once before hopping up on the berth with her in his lap. "He wants to paint you, so look sexy so that I can remember this moment forever." With that said, Sideswipe laid out on his right side, forcing Novashine into a laying position as he faced his brother. He wrapped an arm tightly around her waist, pulling her to his body and placed a hand on her right cheek as he stared down at her with a strangely seductive look. Novashine, who was lying on her back staring up at Sideswipe with a look of complete shock, blinked as she worked to get her thoughts together, trying without success to ignore his upper leg as he hooked it over both of hers.

"Yeah, sweetspark, that look is perfect. Loving the innocent, wide-optic look you've got going on there. It accents my mechly prowess perfectly," he said with a charming grin. Novashine, unable to formulate a sentence, only chirped in response, which only made her blush deepen. "Primus, you need to change your paint color. The blue on your cheek plating is really obvious with the white paint," Sideswipe teased. Novashine's blush deepened even more, and she purposefully hid her face in Sideswipe's chest.

"Ah, I can see that you're really getting into the modeling thing," the red mech chirped, which earned him a slap on the chest from the white femme in his arms.

"Okay, Sideswipe, that's enough. Move it. I don't need an ugly fragger like you screwing up my painting," Sunstreaker said finally. Sideswipe gave his brother a mock hurt look.

"Sunny, how could you say that!"

"Easily. And don't call me that," Sunstreaker said without regret as he opened paints and arranged paintbrushes on the table before the empty canvass. "Now get off my model."

"Fine. I see how you are. Fragger," Sideswipe murmured to himself as he rose from the berth. Novashine stayed still as he moved, still trying to remove the blush from her cheeks.

"Nova, I need you to turn this way. I'm not painting your backside," Sunstreaker stated bluntly. Novashine rolled over so that she faced the painter-slash-gladiator. "Good. I actually kind of like that shy thing you've got there… Curl your legs up a bit and hold your arms over your spark, yeah, like that… Stop fighting the blush; you look like you're thinking too hard. Perfect. Now don't move."

Novashine resisted the urge to wiggle at that command. Primus, this was so awkward. Sure, she didn't have Sideswipe lounging around her anymore, but now, she had both mechs' attention on herself. As it was, her position was rather awkward, though it must not have looked so. Her legs were lazily curled in front of her, and her hands were tucked in front of her chest plating. She could feel the excess Energon in her cheek plating thanks to the warmth it brought, and she could tell that her optics were bright with shock and awareness. She only hoped they weren't extremely wide like newborn sparkling's were. She fought back a grimace at that thought. In fact, maybe it would be better not to think at all…

* * *

It had to be the longest amount of time she spent unmoving in her life. Sure, it was only a quarter joor, but still. She could always sense when one of the mechs looked over at her, Sideswipe especially since it wasn't necessary for him to look at her. They were so different from each other, yet she had grown close to them both, despite what Sunstreaker would claim. Even more, though, they were different from the mechs she dealt with in Iacon. Primus, she was so tired of the Iaconian upper crust. She wasn't looking forward to her Coming of Age Ball at all. Hundreds of mechs and femmes from the upper castes would be trapped in the same ballroom for three or four joors, and most of those mechs would be eligible upper crust mechs, all looking for a rich mate with good connections. Novashine, unfortunately, was a _very_ rich femme with _very_ good connections. With an opiluk in the Council and a danniluk that walked in _all_ the right circles, she would be the catch of the century.

And her freedom would be gone. They would be bonded, which meant that the mech would have easy access to her thoughts and dreams. He would find out about Sunny and Sides, he would find out about her secret hate of the caste system and the mechs that kept it in place, and he would find out about her spark call with Megatron. Her optics dimmed at that thought, though Sunstreaker and Sideswipe didn't notice as they were walking ahead of her in the hallway.

"Well, Nova, this is where we leave you. See you after the battle?" Sideswipe asked over his shoulder with a winning grin on his face. Novashine forced a smile.

"Of course. See you then," she responded. They parted ways then, Sideswipe and Sunstreaker headed toward the arena entrance, and Novashine headed to the lobby. She waved at the ticketmaster, who nodded back at her, allowing her entrance without charge. She was certain that it had been Sideswipe and Sunstreaker that had paid for her ticket beforehand, and she didn't question it. She didn't notice the ticketmaster raise his hand to his comm link, though. She didn't notice the black mech follow her in as she trotted to her seat. She resisted the urge to bounce in her seat as she waited for the match to begin. She only had to wait for a breem before the announcer started up his spiel.

"Mechs and femmes of all ages and castes! Welcome to our graduation match for this vorn!" A cheer rose at this. Graduation matches could be quite gory at times as the gladiators in them didn't quite comprehend restraint yet.

"We have a two-on-two match, and the contenders are not to be scoffed at! First up, welcome to the arena the deadly duo, the twins of terror, _Sideswipe_. _And_. _Sunstreaker!_" A small cheer rose for Novashine's twins as the gate rolled up to show them. Sideswipe grinned at the crowd, waving his arms and gesturing for more cheers as he skated around their half of the arena gracefully. Sunstreaker, on the other hand, simply glowered at everything that looked his way. Novashine waved when Sideswipe rolled in front of her and received an excited wave in return.

"And our other contenders! The tall and cruel and the small and deadly: _Hashmat. And. Lockout!"_ The two mechs were silent as the gate rose. The tall one, Hashmat, was decked out in black armor that was made for speed. His piercing red optics glared over at the two opposing mechs. The smaller one, Lockout, was rather rotund, but appeared to have multiple weapons on his person. Novashine grimaced at that. She had been certain that this was a melee weapons match.

"Okay, femmes and mechs, we've met the contenders, so let's hear the rules. This is a melee weapon match, so any long-distance weapons will get a mech disqualified. This is not a battle to the death, but a death is not exactly discouraged." A loud, roaring cheer rose at that, and Novashine frowned, hoping her twins were as good as they said they were.

"Well, it sounds like the gladiators are ready. What about our crowd?! Are you ready?!"

"YEAH!" the crowd screamed.

"Then _let. The match. BEGIN!"_ A horn blew loudly, signally the beginning of the match, and the twins shot forward without hesitation. Sideswipe was slightly faster than Sunstreaker, skating along gracefully as he slid twin Cybertonium blades from his subspace. Sunstreaker, who was running on unwheeled pedes, mirrored his brother's movements as he rushed the enemy. Hashmat grinned wildly as he pulled out a long serrated blade, and Lockout gave a similar grin as he pulled out a steelen-copper axe.

The mechs reached each other, but instead of attacking, Sideswipe spun around the mechs, easily dodging the mech's weapons with graceful and taunting movements. Sunstreaker, however, was more focused on disabling the mechs before him. Lockout was his target, and he parried the aimless attack easily. Just as he thought. The smaller mech planned to win with brute strength rather than tactical skill. Unwise. Sunstreaker allowed the mech to throw three more assaults before he effortlessly cut the axe off at the handle.

"Fragger!" Lockout yelled as he attempted to dodge Sunstreaker's attack. The golden mech's sword easily pierced the smaller mech's chest armor, leaving a deep gash from his shoulder to his waist.

"Far too easy a battle," Sunstreaker noted, which garnered cheers from the crowd. Lockout pulled a blade from his subspace and lunged at Sunstreaker, who easily dodged.

"Having fun, Sunny?" Sideswipe called out from where he was parrying Hashmat's strikes. The larger mech was growing extremely frustrated with the red mech, infuriated by fact that he kept dodging, throwing in backflips and such to show off as he did. He hated that Sideswipe gained more cheers this way.

"Don't call me that!" Sunstreaker yelled back as he dodged another strike. Unfortunately, he was not quick enough. Lockout's blade slashed across Sunstreaker's armor, not piercing it, but leaving a thick scrape. Sunstreaker backpedaled as she looked down at his chest plating. His optics flashed in pure rage as he looked back at Lockout.

"You _scratched_ my _paint!"_ he roared furiously. And with that fact verbally stated, he charged the smaller mech and proceeded to beat the living scrap out of him.

"Primus, he's a scary one," a mech to her right said.

"Yep! He's one of the best," Novashine responded cheerfully.

"And I suppose you bet on him?" the black mech questioned as he moved to stand beside her, his red optics meeting her blue. She quirked a smile as she shook her helm.

"I learned a long time ago that betting isn't smart," she responded.

"Yeah… I bet nobot will hear you scream as I take you out the back entrance."

Novashine blinked at that. Well, that was random. She looked up at the mech again, shocked by his statement, then she realized who he was.

"Ironhide," she whispered in horror. "Sides-!" Her scream was cut off by the larger mech's hand covering her mouth. His other arm wrapped around her waist as he easily lifted her feet off the ground. She struggled in his arms, but he was far too strong, and her screams were muffled by his hand.

"Nova!" Sideswipe called from the arena, having heard her scream over the crowd. "Sunstreaker! Novashine!"

"Let's end this quick," Sunstreaker grunted back as he plunged his sword into Lockout's stomach, which caused the crowd to cheer wildly. The mech cried out, and when Sunstreaker stood, Lockout did not move. Sideswipe, who had been dodging the whole time, suddenly changed tactics. He ducked below Hashmat's sword when he struck out and brought his own twins swords down on the mech's arm. Hashmat shrieked in pain as his sword and arm dropped to the ground, useless. He attempted to dodge Sideswipe's next blow, which had been aimed towards the larger mechs stomach. However, he slipped in his own spilled Energon, and the swords slashed into his chest plating. He cried out again, and Sideswipe grimaced. They always had to move. Well, he had tried to spare his life. He had more important things to deal with. Together, the twins rushed to the door that separated the crowd from the arena and leapt over it. They hurried to the lobby in hopes of catching up to the botnapper, but they were too late.

"Frag," Sideswipe breathed as he looked around the empty lobby area.

"Let's go. If we split up, we can—"

"Lost something, mechs?" a deep voice called from the rooming hallway. The twins whirled around to face him and scowled.

"What are you doing out here, Megatron?" Sunstreaker demanded.

"Leaving," the large mech replied. "And you need not worry about Novashine. She is safe."

"What did you do?" Sideswipe questioned with narrowed optics. Megatron scowled.

"I contacted Ironhide, the mech currently in charge of the security detail protecting the councilmechs and their family units."

"You? You're the one that had Novashine taken away?" Sideswipe asked incredulously.

"Yes, and if I have my way, she will not be leaving Iacon again. She is unsafe here, and she needs to stay with bots in her caste."

"Ironic statement coming from _you_," Sunstreaker sneered.

"Perhaps. I will be seeing you two around eventually. Hopefully, you will see reason by then."

Megatron gave them a dismissive wave and without further ado, walked out of the Forge, headed to the city he had once hoped to never enter: Iacon.

* * *

**LunarShadowAngel:** Yup! Always gotta have the twins! They make a story a _story_. ;)

**Luna Uchiha666:** Lol. Yeah, it's ironic, isn't it? Megatron wouldn't have taken over Cybertron if not for the femme who wanted to be his sparkmate! XD Irony! I love it! Don't worry; I blushed while I wrote it. My sister blushed as she read it. We both giggled like little schoolgirls. It was embarrassing to a point, but still. Aww! NAd you make me blush for a different reason! So glad you like! :)

**Lovely Rain Dancer:** Bit more than a cameo. Sunny and Sides are in it for the long haul. This is to help me figure out Sunny's character sketch. Dude's too hard to write =_=

**Agent Or4ng3:** Me, too. I loves me some Sideswipe, and Sunny's got that bad boy, I hate the world thing going on that's just so sexy on him. I dunno why! She can't help it ;) She's a sweetheart stuck in a world of snobs. XD

**Iceshadow911247:** Lol. "My, my, sister, what are _you_ reading?" *insert wiggly eyebrows* I could totally see my brother doing that. "Fifty Shades of Gray: PG13 Transformers version" 0.o XD

**Suki-Angel91494:** Very glad you like her. As you can see in this chapter, he can feel the pull, he just refuses to recognize it because of his own prejudice. :\

**Seshat0Enyo:** Hey hey! New reviewer! (At least, I don't recognize your profile picture if you _have_ reviewed) Thank you for taking the time to give the feedback, and I'm very glad you are enjoying the fic. :)

**Esor 'Rolamee:** This was my goal! There's a lot more romance in this one, and besides, Megatron is more… forward than Optimus is. It'll get even more better as y'all are introduced to my twisty plot. Hang on tight for the rollarcoaster ride! :D

**Nightshade-Prime:** Lol. I actually have been having trouble updating my fics. I dunno why this one has stuck so much. Maybe I'm in a weird mood. Who can say? *shrug*

**Link's Rose:** Uhmmm… This fic would fit best in the movieverse… Yeah. In fact, upcoming events will make that more concrete, though you can think of it in Prime 'verse if you like, but the canons won't match up as well.

**Angel897:** Glad you enjoyed it :)

**Leonixon:** Lol. No melting! I don't wanna have to clean you up! My wetvac's in the shop, and I can't afford another one 0.o

Yeah, I do actually claim that talent (amongst the few others that my modesty will allow *cough cough*). I bet I could even make Shockwave appealing, though I dunno if that's actually a good thing… ;)

OH, believe me, I wish I had a mech like Megatron or Optimus to marry in real life. They make normal guys seem so inferior because they're so fraggin perfect. *sigh* Optimus, come marry me!

**Sunstreaker's Squishy:** Exactly what I was going for! I had to put the disclaimer, though, just in case some guest (because it's always they _never_ log in) gave me this scathing flame because her older brother had time reading and wants to be president and can be whoever he wants, yada, yada, yada. I've had those types of responses before, so I have long since learned to protect myself. *nod nod*

Yeah. There are so many backstories to Sunny and Sides, so I kinda spun my own. If I get bored enough, I might write an origin fic for them, but I highly doubt that will ever happen. Too much effort ^.^;;

**AndromedaAI:** Very glad you like them! I try hard to gain my reader's appreciation like that! Sunny and Sides never really struck me as upper crust mechs. They're too rugged, too deadly. And I actually had fun making up the caste system, and have used it before in previous ficlets and such. I used in _Need You Now_, a Ratchet/OC songfic, and in _It's a Love Story Baby, Just Say, Yes,_ my Starsctream/OC songfic. Fun stuffs :)

**Thebookfan09:** Yeah, too long, no? But it's gonna be too short to truly call a full length fic. But whatever. Yeah, Megsy is kinda gung-ho in whatever he does, and we'll see that in this fic, as well, but I can't comprehend someone hurting someone else for fun. I can't wrap my mind around it, and I have trouble writing it simply because it doesn't make sense to me.

Jazz: Fraggin' traitor. You c'n sleep ou'side tuhnigh'. Let the petrohound eat ya. Bet yo'll be beggin' fo' mah fo'giveness. Fragger.

Probably because of the romance. The romance escalates it. Besides, anytime Megatron is created correctly, the fic seems to take a life of it's own, ya know? ;)

You know, I wasn't going to kill anybot until you said something… however…

**Chistarpax:** Lol. Yeah, Megsy is illiterate. Well, he's not anymore, but he was. He's a gladiator. Ain't got a need for books *shrug* is the life of a killer.

**Guest:** Now there is :D

**xXRetrobotXx:**Lol. We'll see. If this story goes as planned, I'm hoping it will be the new favorite of all my readers. ;D

* * *

*Megatron lied that first time. She could have left if she had actually walked all the way up to the door. I just found that to be highly ironic for some reason, so I decided to put it in there. You have to have a password to enter the door, but you can leave anytime you want without any codes or keys at all.

See? Sideswipe was being forward this chapter ^^;; Naughty Sideswipe. XD Aaaand Megsy called Ironhide, so we got another cameo! And yes, I named an OC Hashmat. I was originally going to call him Hashtag, but I snickered everytime I wrote it, so I figured y'all would be snickering everytime you read it, and I didn't think it was fair that a mech would be snickered at as he fought, ya know? Besides, I named an OC Glitch before! Poor bot died. Sad day. Well, rambling is over

Review my friends!


	4. Chapter 4

1) I'm feeling better thanks to my super strong meds, and I found out the hard way that my meds dehydrate me... It would've been nice to not find this out at school... Joy...

2) Your minds will be blown this chapter. Just sayin...

3) Another culture lesson! The Circle is basically a huge assortment of upper caste bots. The term can also be used at the upper crust gossip mill personified. (i.e. I want to hear all the Circle has on Novashine!)

4) A white optic bot is part of the performers/artists caste. I'll work at getting the caste system up for those who want it.

5)I love how it's like every other story I write is a big hit. XD

* * *

Chapter 4

4,625 words

* * *

"Skyfree! Skyfree!"

"Oh, Flipshot, I was worried you were not going to show!"

"As if I'd miss a chance to chat with you. How have you been, my friend?"

"Oh, simply fabulous. I got a suitor's request the other solar cycle, too! Here, sit down so we can speak of it!"

"Oh, I adore this little café. I swear they sell the best oil cakes in all of Iacon."

"Then it would have to be the best in all of Cybertron seeing as no other city can compare to ours."

Loud, twittering giggles.

"True, true. Now, Skyfree, what has happened since I have been away in Praxus?"

"Well, first, you must tell me of your journeys! I have not been to Praxus in these past seven vorns at least, and I _long_ to hear of how our fellow elites are doing there."

"Oh, very well. The mechs there are still handsome, the Enforcers are still unyielding, and the _thieving_ mechs… well, _I_ wouldn't mind being botnapped by one of them."

"Flipshot, how scandalous of you! I would not like _any_ mech of the, ehem, _lower_ species to get anywhere _near_ me."

"Oh, you'd be singing a different tune if you simply met them! Oh, and the nightlife! There was a mech I met, and, _oh_, could he _dance!_"

"Oh, you are so obsessive. What was his name?"

"Blaster. He's originally from Helix, but that hardly matters. He's a… well, the clubbers call him a DJ, a Datasong Jockey. Primus, that mech had a body."

"…But…?"

"But he was a white optic mech."

"Well, that's not too far below us. Only a few castes."

"Yes, but I don't think my opiluk would approve of a party mech courting me. Besides, I don't think Blaster was planning on staying in the relationship for the long haul."

"Oh. Pity."

A snort of amusement.

"So, what's the scoop in Iacon, Skyfree?"

"Oh, where to start! Well, you'll never guess who the most popular cultural and personal artist is right now."

"A single artist for both genres?"

"Yes, yes! He's a beautiful mech by the designation of Sunstreaker, _and_…" She paused for dramatic effect. "He's a military build!"

"No!"

"Yes! Oh, Primus, he has everybot beside themselves with confusion and awe. He has a gorgeous frame that he designed himself, and he is so mysterious. He never talks to his patrons, but his paintings do all the talking he would need to."

"But how did a military build wind up selling paintings in Iacon? Surely he had an outside funder."

"Oh, that's where the story gets extra juicy!"

An excited squeal.

"Novashine discovered them when she was taking a little trip to the Forge in Kaon."

"The Forge? You mean that barbaric battling ring? What was she doing there?"

"Nobot really knows, but what they _do_ know is that she was going there every solar cycle at the same time."

"So you think-?"

"Yes! It caused quite a stir in the Elite Circle! She had been going there for orns when Captain Ironhide got an anonymous tip that she had been seen there. He was torqued by the fact that one of his guards hadn't been doing their job, so he went down to Kaon to reclaim her himself!"

"Oh, Primus!"

"Yes, but even _that_ is not the best part. The next solar cycle, she disappeared again, only to reappear with two identical gladiators hovering over her, and I mean they were _hovering_."

"What, like possessively?"

"_Very_ possessively."

"And I thought Blaster's actions were a turn-on. So what is she to them? A pleasure femme?"

"That's the thing. Nobot really knows. She funded Sunstreaker's first art exposition, then she didn't need to fund anymore, and rumor has it that he has paintings of her stored away in his painting subspace."

"What about the other mech?"

"Oh, he's her new _bodyguard_ since Blackout joined the Defense Force."

"Wait, wait. Defense Force?"

"Oh, you didn't hear? The Senate called for the formation of a defense force to defend Cybertron from enemy attacks. That organic species a few planets away has been launching attacks on nearby civilizations."

"Wow. So who is in charge? Who was put on the force?"

An excited clap.

"Primus, Flipshot. Any particular reason why you're so excited?"

"Well, I find military builds to be quite… attractive. They have that rougish charm that is frowned upon, and they're so rugged and rough. This Defense Force puts some of those mechs in a caste next to or somewhere near ours."

"Yeah, but I doubt they'll be interested in us. The leader is actually a mech by the name of Megatron. Well, High Lord Protectorate Megatron, now."

"… I've never heard of him."

"I wouldn't expect you to. He was the champion of the Kaonian gladiator arena."

"Oh… So how did he manage to come to power?"

"I couldn't really say. Apparently, he taught himself about politics and battle tactics and pleaded his case with the Senate."

"Wow. Must have been a rather appealing case."

"I know. Apparently, the force is made up of all the greatest gladiators and tactical minds on Cybertron. They brought in Captain Ironhide for security and Chromia for weapons management."

Flipshot wrinkled her nose at this.

"I cannot understand how a respectable femme like Chromia could deign to act like a military mech. Ironhide is so far below her standing."

"Chomia never _was_ one for cultural norms…"

"Very true. So… what about the local gossip? I need to know what parties are a must-go, and I need to know what the gossip is so that I don't look like a fool when I attend."

"Well, the biggest event coming up is actually Novashine's Coming of Age ball. _Everybot_ is coming, of course."

"Ah, so I guess that disproves the theory that her bodyguard is her lover."

"Well, I wouldn't say that."

"Please. Traachon would not offer her out if this was the case. Besides, Novashine has never been with a mech. Did you heard what happened when that mech from the Towers kissed her?"

"Uhm… no, I don't think so."

"Oh, Skyfree! She didn't know what to do! Novashine doesn't know how to kiss!"

"Oh." A snort of amusement. "I suppose she is rather green, isn't she?"

"Primus, yes. The femme refused to come with me to Helix because she didn't want to be felt up by all those mechs."

"Well, I can understand that. The last thing she needs is to be taken advantage of. Traachon would kill her."

"Very true. I heard he beats her when he's had a bad cession with council."

"You know that is a lie, and it is unwise to spread such rumors, Flipshot."

"Oh, come now, Skyfree! You cannot say that you do not agree! The way Traachon treats her in public is positively horrid."

"Yes, but talking down to her is a far cry different than beating her, and perhaps if she acted more like a lady and less like a commoner, she wouldn't have that problem."

"Probably. Tell me, is Novashine's party invite only?"

A mech in the background paused in his movements to listen into the conversation.

"No, but I believe you have to be of the upper classes. Traachon _refused _to let her invite any commoners, though I doubt she would."

"Yes, those two military builds are her only friends, aren't they?"

"Wouldn't surprise me."

"Well, perhaps Traachon will chose her a mate during this ball."

"Yes. I think it would be hilarious to watch her squirm as her intended kisses her. Let us see if she freezes up."

The two femmes giggled as if the joke was one for the century, and they did not take notice of the bulky mechs movements until he was walking past them. Flipshot stared with wide optics as the tall, silver mech walked past her, barely resisting the urge to flirt with him. She was supposed to be a lady, and the Iaconian Market Square was no place to flirt, especially with a military build. Instead, she turned her attention back to her friend and continued to gossip about Novashine, the Circle's current favorite topic.

* * *

"Sunstreaker, this is awkward," Novashine complained as her current best friend painted her plating. True, it probably shouldn't be awkward, and it actually wouldn't have been if he were a mech whose sole job was to paint armor and plating.

"No, Nova. This would be awkward if _Sideswipe_ was painting you. I'm almost done, anyways." She shouldn't be complaining. After all, there were thousands of femmes that dreamed of having their armor painted by _Sunstreaker_. Pit, most femmes dreamed of simply hearing Sunstreaker's _voice_, and Novashine had the "honor" of having both "dreams" fulfilled.

"Now, Novashine, remember that if you wanna pull out of this, my offer to bond still stands," Sideswipe repeated from where he was pacing across the room from her. Novashine gave an amused smile at that.

"Of course, careful bodyguard," she responded. Sideswipe sent her a weak glare before he continued his pacing. Novashine simply smiled at this and forced herself into thought in an attempt to ignore the paintbrush Sunstreaker was running over her plating. It had been a few orns since that cycle that seemed to have passed so long ago, since that cycle when she left the Forge with Sunstreaker and Sideswipe. It was the last time she had seen Megatron, despite the fact that she knew he was in Iacon, putting his new knowledge to use as the leader of the new Defense Force. Her opiluk had been singing the mech's praises the whole lunar cycle he came home after appointing Megatron as the new High Lord Protectorate. Novashine wondered how many bots knew of her involvement with him, if any knew at all. Not that it mattered much. It was very obvious what she was to him: a tool, and she had worked very well at her assigned job.

Well, at least the same couldn't be said for the twins. Sunstreaker had grown just as protective as her as he was of his twin. She knew of the "Novashine Collection" that the Circle had rumored into existence. The rumors were not completely false, as Sunstreaker had quite a few paintings of her, though the same could be said about his brother. Sunstreaker had a tendency to paint those that were dear to him. She also knew of the rumors surrounding her involvement with him. Sunstreaker never spoke during his expos and galas, but rather glared at everyone and walked around the exhibit to make sure none of the "stuffy blue-sights screwed up any of his paintings." This left Novashine to do all the mingling, seeing as Sunstreaker only spoke to her and her newest bodyguard, Sideswipe.

And that right there was another situation in itself. Novashine had to admit that she was rather taken aback when her opiluk informed her that Blackout and Ironhide had both been called to the Defense Force. He had informed her that she would be reassigned a bodyguard, which was when Sideswipe had jumped in.

"_I can protect her!"_

"_You? Do you have any idea how, how _scandalous_ that would be?!"_

"_Any more scandalous than Blackout guarding her or her being caught in Kaon? At least you can be certain that I can protect her."_

"_Hmm… Very well… You will be given a trial period. If you do anything unsightly toward her, I will have you put in prison."_

And thus had begun his new job. The first couple of cycles had been rather awkward, to say the least. Sideswipe, being a gladiator, had better hearing than most and had nearly attacked a mech that had been gossiping about Novashine, who had apparently been thrown into the spotlight in a negative way when she introduced Sunstreaker. It had taken Novashine a few breems to explain to Sideswipe that she didn't care what the Circle said about her (though the pain in her optics defied her words) and that their words did not give Sideswipe a reason to attack. Sideswipe had scowled and muttered a few expletives, which made a passing femme gasp in horror.

Then there had been the problem with the sleeping arrangements. The twins had already been settled in Novashine's oversized housing unit, but when Sideswipe had accepted (demanded) the role of her bodyguard, that changed. A bodyguard recharged with his charge, usually cuddling said charge to his chassis and covering their body with their own so that an attacker could not hurt the charge in the case of an assassination. This was why most bodyguards were bulky and oversized. Blackout, who had always been close to his charge, had acted like a comfort recharge doll for her, cuddling her close and allowing her to recharge to the rhythm of his spark. It was something he had done for her since she was a post-sparkling youngling. This was… awkward with Sideswipe…

"_Okay, let me get this straight… I get to recharge with you?"_

"_Stop making it sound so dirty, you slagger. It's just to make sure nobot attacks while I recharge."_

"_I see… so… does this change the relationship between us?"_

"_Yes. It means you're my bodyguard instead of my friend, and why is Sunstreaker in here?"_

"_We share a berth. We're twins, Nova."_

"_Oh… I like how you're being so much more mature than Sides is about this."_

"_That's only because you can't read his processor."_

"_Sideswipe!"_

"_What? It's true. You sure you don't wanna bond with her?"_

"_Stop lying about my thoughts!"_

"_Uh-huh, sure… Lies…"_

"_Uhmm, recharge sounds fabulous."_

"_You sound excited, Nova."_

"_Stop twisting my words and lay down."_

"_Gotcha. Mmm, you're comfy."_

"_Move that hand, or I'll remove it."_

And from that moment on, the three of them recharged in the same berth, Novashine sandwiched between Sunny and Sides as she recharged to the sound of their sparks.

"So what'll happen when you find a bondmate?" Sunstreaker asked suddenly from his spot by her right arm. He was painting the finishing touches, almost done.

"Well… I guess it depends on the mech. I might be told to stay with my creators while my mech goes on business or political trips. He might take me with him."

"What about us? Do we stay your bodyguards?"

"I… I hope so. I don't want to be alone." And that was her main fear. She had been alone for so long, stuck in a world of false friends and uncaring creators. Really, the only mechs that had a shred of love for her had been her sparkling guardian, Ironhide, and her youngling guardian and bodyguard, Blackout. Strange how military mechs, the mechs that were looked down upon because they had no emotions, were the only ones that gave her the love she so needed, love that she feared she would never feel again.

"We won't leave you, Nova," Sideswipe promised solemnly as he approached her.

"Finished. Give it a klik to dry, and you'll be ready for the party," Sunstreaker announced. Novashine smiled her thanks as she stood from her berth. Sideswipe held an arm out to help to stand without smudging her new paint job and assisted her over to the mirror. She stared at the femme in the mirror with an expression that was filled with mixed emotions. Joy, because she was finally old enough to bond. Awe, because Sunstreaker had made her look beautiful. Fear, because this would be the next step in her life. Frustration, because this was the last moment of true freedom she would experience. Terror, because she was about to give her life and future to a mech that would probably see her as a toy and a maid. Resignation, because she had no choice in the matter.

Still, as she stared at the femme, she couldn't help but feel a bit empowered. Her white armor glimmered in the artificial light of her room. Red and gold accented her armor perfectly, matching the paintjobs of her two escorts rather well. Her plating held no gemstones or precious metals, as she didn't need them to prove she had wealth to flaunt. Everybot knew of her standing in society, and she need not prove anything to them. Then she looked into her reflections optics and saw her uncertainty reflected back to her. She felt a familiar stinging in her optics as her spark clenched.

"You don't have to do this, sweetspark," Sideswipe murmured as he gathered her into his arms.

"Yes, I do, Sides," she whimpered back as she hid her face in his strong chest. Why couldn't he have been her sparkmate? Why had it been Megatron, a mech that didn't care whether she lived or died? A pet, a plaything, nothing more than a means to a beginning. What was she?

* * *

The trip to the ballroom was shorter than she had hoped it would be, and she glanced up at the two mechs standing on either side of her. Sideswipe gave her an encouraging smile while Sunstreaker simply gave her a solemn nod. With a heavy sigh, she gathered her courage, straightened her back, and walked into the ballroom with confident strides. The room went still and silent at her entrance before an applause rose.

"May I formally introduce my femme creation to the Circle! Novashine!" Traachon announced with a debonair smile. Gemstone, his mate and Novashine danniluk, smiled and clapped along with the others. Novashine forced a graceful smile as he made her way down the stairs, Sideswipe and Sunstreaker flanking her steps. Mechs and femmes raised their spark signatures in greeting and congratulations as she passed, but she didn't get far before a crowd had settled around her.

"Novashine, your plating is simply beautiful!"

"Novashine, I simply cannot wait for you to experience your initiation into the Circle!"

"Novashine, it's been a while, but surely you remember me, Skyfree, your best friend!"

"Novashine, that paintjob accents your optics so perfectly."

"Oh, Nova, only _you_ could manage to get the two most gorgeous mechs to escort you to a party."

The femme in question only smiled and nodded at the false smiles and sycophantic words, all of which had likely been rehearsed. There was not a doubt in her mind that most of these femmes and mechs had been gossiping about her before she entered the room. Primus, she missed the Forge! The mechs there might have been rough and a bit perverted, but at least they were straightforward and honest.

"Okay, femmes and mechs, that is quite enough. Novashine, my darling, there are quite a few mechs you need to meet, and the lunar cycle is still young. Come with me." Novashine couldn't protest as her danniluk dragged her away, the twins barely able to keep up. Thus begun what was sure to be the worst lunar cycle of her life.

* * *

Megatron smiled as he stepped into the ballroom. He had been waiting for this cycle with a strange sense of anticipation ever since he had heard those two femmes gossiping in the Iaconian Market Square about his femme. It was strange how much he had learned about his little Novashine from that conversation. It certainly shed some light on why she never responded to his kisses. That wasn't what brought him here though. Well… he actually wasn't completely sure _why_ he had come here. There was no denying that he had been avoiding the femme like a bad case of cosmic rust since he had arrived in Iacon. On that same note, though, he had spent the time fighting that strange pull in his spark since he had arrived. He could remember forcibly ignoring the urge to visit the femme that taught him as he gave his case to the council, people that he hated with his very spark. They were the reason that half of Cybertron was starving, after all. He ignored the urge, though, knowing that it was unwise. He may have been boosted up to the higher castes, but he was still a military mech, and Novashine was still just a rich plaything.

At least, that was what he thought until that irritating femme had stated that Novashine would likely be bonding soon. Never before had he felt such a pain in his spark. It squeezed tightly in panic and pulled harshly, as if demanding him to go to his little pet's side. Still he ignored the pull, deciding instead to simply attend the party, despite his lack of invitation. Then he heard that the party allowed upper class mechs and femmes entrance. With that fact known, he abandoned his post at the table beside the tittering femmes and prepared for the lunar cycle when he would meet his pet again.

Now, he was gazing over the crowd, appreciating his height as he watched his pet be toted around by her femme creator, introduced to multiple eligible mechs in search of one that would be her bondmate. Megatron growled at that thought, his spark wrenching possessively and his Energon boiling at that thought. She was _his_, and no other mech would touch her. With that thought in mind, he strode purposefully across the ballroom with the superiority that one could expect from a bot in his position. The crowd parted for him, not wanting to be trampled by his confident steps, and all stared after him, wanting in on the gossip that would likely rise from this upcoming event. After all, he was headed toward the belle of the ball.

"Novashine, what an honor to see you again," he purred in greeting as he approached her from the side. His spark practically sang at their close proximity, begging him to get closer. Unfortunately, that was not going to happen. The femme stiffened and slowly turned her furious, hurt optics to him. He watched in mild fascination as those ocean blue optics brightened to a lighter shade of blue in rage, uncertainty slowly taking place of his confidence.

"How _dare_ you show up here!" she finally snapped. Her delicate hands fisted at her sides as her body went rigid, much like his did when he was preparing to attack an enemy. Megatron gave an amused smirk.

"You have not missed me?" he asked condescendingly. Novashine was having none of that, though.

"No, I haven't, and obviously, you have not missed me, either! Of all the cycles and places to harass me, you choose my Coming of Age ball? Have you made it your personal goal to destroy my life and what little dignity I still retain?!" she demanded furiously. Megatron's smirk dropped at that. She must have meant the rumors. He was about to speak when two familiar mechs stepped in.

"Novashine, you still have mechs to meet. Sunstreaker, why don't you escort her to the next meeting," Sideswipe interjected. The femme huffed irately before stepping back toward Sunstreaker, who wrapped a protective arm around her waist before leading her away. Sideswipe stayed behind, glaring at the mech he once idolized. "This was an invitation-only party, and I know who Gemstone invited."

"I heard otherwise," Megatron responded with a smirk. "Are you enjoying your first upper caste party, Sideswipe?"

"Not in the least, but that doesn't matter. You need to leave," the red mech stated, keeping on topic. Megatron gave him a condescendingly amused look.

"And I suppose you are going to make me?"

"I would be more than willing to—"

"Ah, Megatron! Good to see you here, mech!"

"Councilmech Xaaron," Megatron greeted. "I am quite surprised to see you here." Sideswipe scowled, knowing he could not force the Lord Protectorate out if the councilmech vouched for him. Instead, he left him with a warning.

"Stay away from Nova. She's not interested in your lies anymore," he growled to Megatron, who merely quirked a ridge before returning to his conversation with Xaaron. Sideswipe huffed irritably before following his brother's spark signal to his charge's side.

"I understand. The conflicts between Tarn and Vos have indeed been growing worse. I wish my opiluk would do something about it and—oh! Sides, you're back. Sideswipe, meet Liaison Ratchet, a politician and liaison to the Council of Ancients. Ratchet, this is my bodyguard, Sideswipe," Novashine introduced warmly.

Ratchet was only a bit taller than the twins and sported (what Sideswipe though to be) an obnoxious chartreuse paint job. His blue optics seemed to offset the paint, but in a strangely fashionable way. Sideswipe nodded at the mech, not quite sure what to make of him.

"Greetings. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance. We were just speaking of the conflict between Tarn and Vos. I don't suppose a warrior such as you has anything to offer?" Ratchet questioned politely, obviously trying to get the red twin in on the conversation. Sideswipe wondered idly if he had failed in an attempt to draw in Sunny.

"Well, I know that Megatron came from Tarn… It's ruled by Shockwave now, right? The Shockwave I met was a real fragger, real military-minded. He probably just wants to destroy Vos because Vos is the top creator of Energon and produces the greatest flyers," Sideswipe stated with a frown.

"Yes, but isn't Vosian Energon heavily guarded?" Novashine asked. Sideswipe nodded gravely.

"Yes. Seeker Energon is different than ours because a seeker uses more energy than us in a day. I'd bet my swords that that's what Shockwave wants. That, and he just wants to destroy the city-state he sees as being stronger than his own."

"Yet my opi doesn't want to send in help," she huffed angrily.

"That's probably a good idea. Vos isn't likely to accept our help, and Tarn's military is far more advanced than Iacon's is."

"Well, it's not like I'm having them fight by themselves. We'll let Lord Starscream send in his warriors as well."

"Either way, it's none of our concern at the moment," Ratchet broke in, wanting to break up the full-scale debate before it started. "This is a marvelous party, Novashine, and I am quite amazed at you, as well. It's been a while since a femme has been able to keep up an intelligent conversation with me over politics." Novashine beamed at him.

"I try to keep up to date on these types of things. Gossip is rather boring when compared to real things like this," she responded honestly. Ratchet gave her an impressed look.

"Perhaps we should speak about it again. I don't suppose you're free the solar cycle after next," Ratchet questioned. Novashine blushed and nodded her helm.

"I'm free," she responded with a beaming smile as she fought the weak pull in her spark. Megatron was not interested, and Ratchet was. No need to pine after a mech that didn't care about or want her.

"Then I shall pick you up at your housing unit. The third joor sound about good?*"

"Sounds like a plan," she responded with a smile.

"I will see you then. I must greet one of my colleagues, but I will be looking forward to our date. Farewell, my light," Ratchet said as he strode away. Novashine smiled after him for a few kliks before Gemstone dragged her off to meet the next mech. Nobot noticed Megatron glaring at the mech as he walked away from his femme, and nobot could know that the gladiator was more jealous than ever that his femme was giving that politician the beaming look of love and admiration that was supposed to be meant for _him_.

* * *

**Agent Or4ng3:** I know, right?! The twins are cast so many ways, but they're always loveable for some strange reason! I just don't get it! I think the hardest thing about Sunny, though, is that I have no one to base him off of, which I guess is a good thing. No creepy sociopathic friends hanging out… 0.o

Well… it was kind of for convenience too. I mean, he only had one chair, and she needed to be able to see the datapad. Obviously, his lap was the only logical placae for her to be ;) Besides, don't you let your little pet sit in your lap?

Yes, this story will actually go all the way to the war. In fact, if my plot works how I want it to, It should go all the way to the last movie. You'll see how that plays in. It will be dramatic. *nod nod*

And Sunny wouldn't be jealous. You see, Novashine uses Metal Fleck Gold. Sunstreaker uses Sunshine Gold. Two very different shades. Sunny might eat you if you say that again 0.o ;D

**Luna Uchiha666:** Eh heh. Yeah, Megsy made a bad decision, but what else does he know? He doesn't quite understand what his spark is trying to tell him. :\ Dawww! Thanks, honey! X3

**Lovely Rain Dancer:** Lol. You know, I kinda am, too. I'm sorely tempted to write a spinoff where she gets together with them instead, but that would likely be super awkward, and I don't write smut. 0.o A Novashine/Twins pairing would probably have to have some form of, too because of how I wrote Sideswipe. :\ Then again, I could play up the sweet affection they've got for her… Huh… Naww… too much effort.

**Seshat0Enyo:** Thanks for the review :)

**Link's Rose:** Twins are awesome. X) I think the Ironhide dilemma was spoken of in this one. Basically, he was pissed that Blackout let Nova disappear, so he went and got her himself. And yeah… Megatron's kind of a mean fragger right now. :\

**Angel897:** Of course Sunny's talent is realized! He's too awesome for it not to be! :D

**Minimus Prime:** lol. That's what I was aiming for everybot to think. I was seriously debating having her kidnapped, but Megs would've interfered with that. And don't use Sides' smile! That is a weapon of mass seduction—I mean, destruction! 0.0 XD

**xXRetrobotXx:** Of course Megs is protective! She's his sparkmate, even if he doesn't quite get it yet. ;)

**Sunstreaker's Squishy:** I figure after a few orns, she'd cave and tell them the truth. 'Sides, Megatron called her by name, remember? I believe Sunny being a painter is actually canon. I'd have to double-check, but I'm fairly certain he was a mural painter before the war in one of the 'verses. It was the same one that Sides was a black market tradesmech.

Yeah, I was actually gonna make 'Hide a kidnapper wanting to ransom Traachon's creation, but decided against it.

I had those symptoms about two weeks ago. Turns out that if you have inflamed sinuses for more than three weeks, you'll come down with sinusitis. Really sucks.

**AndromedaAI:** Lol. Okay. I'll start writing it up. :) Actually, he sent Ironhide to get her out of his metaphorical hair. She didn't belong in the Forge, and she was making him eel things he didn't understand, so he removed her from the equation.

Well, if he was born to a painter, then he would have been in the artist and performer's caste. However, he was born to a military family unit, so he was not allowed to show his abilities because he was such a low caste, and people of low castes simply did not attempt to rise to a higher caste. It was a social norm that was simply accepted. Not necessarily liked, but accepted.

**Iceshadow911247:** Lol. No blushing in this one, though. Nice and easy read, and don't stress it. I haven't read that porn book, thank God. I'm not that lonely and desperate. :\ Lol. Ironhide, kidnapper extrodinair! He's climbin' in yo'r windows, he's snatchin' yo'r femmes up. Primus, I can't believe I just said that. *facepalm*

I think you're the only one that hasn't forgiven poor Rip-Rage. He committed suicide—what?—five months ago? Forgive and forget, my friend. He rests with Primus now. *serene smile* Once again, though, I didn't want my readers laughing at poor Hashmat as he died. *snort* #R.I.P. #FailGladiator

**Thebookfan09:** I should leave this one open-ended. Just be like, she came to earth as Megatron was attacking Egypt. The end. XD Y'all would kill me! Haha!

Dreadwing: What did you say, human?

Jazz: Yeah, you were prob'ly safuh with meh…

Dreadwing: *cracks knuckles* let's see how far a human mech can fly unaided. Hope you have a sufficient propulsion system. *evil grin*

Jazz: Yup, definitely safer with meh.

I think everyone thought 'Hide was gonna hurt her. I felt kinda bad for her, too. Having Ironhide kidnap you from the Forge in Kaon must be rather frightening (and embarrassing when the gossip mill starts turning)

I think it depends… I dunno if you should go around kissing random girls and saying, "I wanted to see if you tasted like that fully-filtered Energon you drink." Might get some weird looks… Lol. I feel kinda bad for Sides. Gotta give him credit for trying, though. ^^"

I love writing dialogue without description. It's so much fun, and I can be so creative, cuz everyone gets to use their own imagination. :) Fun stuffs!

And I'm getting better now. :D

**AUTOBOT NIGHTMARE:** Yeah. Megsy's a mean fragger :\ I actually came up with the system when I was on a road trip to Colorado. It shows up mainly in my songfics, really taking hold in _Need You Now _and _It's a Love Story, Baby, Just Say, Yes._ I enjoy coming up with all kinds of Cybertronian culture, though. Seekers and general culture in specific. I came up with my own Wrecker culture, as well, and I'm working on the culture in Kaon at the moment. It's fun for me. :)

**Sweettea1:** Well, in the canon, Megs doesn't really have that soft spot. This fic is really AU, but I made it look real by throwing in a whole bunch of canon facts. I'm good at that. :) And I don't mind you babbling. I shall read the whole review, regardless of how long it is :)

**Guest:** There is now! Wait… didn't you already ask that last chapter? 0.o

**AWellKeptSecret:** Lol. I shall. :D I love sharing my Au Transformers culture. Tons of fun to make it up and tons of fun to share it. :) There actually is a green-optics caste, along with pink, white, orange, and gray. :) They just haven't been mentioned because none of them pertain to the plot. :\

And… it's not too bad when they're getting along. When they're fighting, though. Twin silent treatment is awkward with me sitting in the middle. :| Oh, hey! Look across from you. That's me in the twins in the brig right beside you. Sides angered prowl again. Sunny and Sides still refuse to talk to each other… =_=''

**Golden Eagle 603:** Lol. OC Glitch was actually Chromia, Flareup, and Arcee's opiluk in my oneshot _Sisterhood_. His death was kinda sad, but the rest of the fic was cute. Well, the parts with Arcee were. The rest was Flareup angst. XD

I dunno how many chapters there will be. I've been thinking about going back and stretching out the chapters a bit more to make the fic longer because of how much attention it's been getting… Very glad you like it. *snicker* Oc Glitch. That's all I'm gonna call him now when I'm talking about him. OC Glitch. X'D

* * *

*There are eight joors in my cybertronian day: 4 joors in a solar cycle and 2 joors each lunar cycle, so Ratchet's offering to pick her up at about ten a.m. in our time.

Soooo did I blow your mind? Did I? Did I? XD Love these plot twists! So, a show of hands! Who hates the upper castes, especially Skyfall and Flipshot?! :D I know I do! Well, review, my friends!


	5. Chapter 5

1) Sorry it's late! I had finals and dizziness and fun stuff like that! The joy is that my wintermester is _finally_ over!

2) I love how many of your were shocked by the fact that Traachon didn't want Megs to get together with Nova. My darlings, he's a red-sight, a military mech. Do you honestly think Traachon wants to taint his energonline with a _red-sight_?No, he'd much prefer Megatron finish his job and go back to Kaon, taking the twins with him :\

3)My every-flexible medic OC, Fixit, is mentioned! :D If you know who he is, cheer for him! And Andromeda, the Autobot reporter, also makes appearance. She is canon, though. :\

4) *evil smile*

* * *

Chapter 5

7,693 words

* * *

Novashine wrung her hands nervously as she stood on the front step outside her housing unit. It had taken all of three breems to convince Sideswipe that Ratchet was a good mech and would do nothing untoward her. It was nothing personal… Well, it was personal, she supposed after a klik of thought. She simply didn't want Sideswipe going with her on her date with Ratchet. She almost snorted at the thought of Ratchet's face when Sideswipe would make some perverted joke or some sort of pass at her while she walked beside the politician, and he _would_ make some sort of joke or a pass. It was _Sideswipe_, after all, and the mech didn't know _how_ to act civilized in that manner. At least, not towards her. He never acted that way towards any other femmes. Huh… maybe he really _did_ want to bond with her. She almost giggled at that thought, then the thought of being harassed by him in public all the time for the rest of her existence made that laugh suffocate in her vocal processor. Primus, he would be a nightmare at parties, and not to mention when he would inherit Traachon's role at High Councilmember. She snorted at the thought of _Sideswipe_ being serious in a council meeting. He'd probably fall asleep halfway through or start drawing vulgar pictures on his official datapads.

"Novashine!" a familiar, deep voice called. The femme snapped her helm up and smiled at the approaching mech. Deep blue optics met ocean blue, and Novashine frowned.

"You have changed your spark signature… Ratchet, you are not of the medical caste," Novashine said in a reproachful tone. Ratchet only smiled at her.

"My danniluk is a medic's assistant, and the mech she works with has decided to hand over his practice to me," he explained as he gently took her left hand in his own left hand. He wrapped his right hand around her waist and smiled as he led her away from her house. It had been a while since he had courted a femme, and Traachon's creation had attracted him a way that most femmes couldn't. She was beautiful, as any upper crust femme was, but she was _smart_. The femmes in his caste range were so… stupid. Most already had money and acted like a simpering dolt to attract mechs, and unfortunately, that was what most mechs wanted in a femme: beauty and ignorance. It was something he couldn't fathom seeing as he searched for intelligence. He would rather bond with an ugly intelligent femme than a beautiful stupid one. Luckily, he may have found a femme with a lovely mix of both beauty and intelligence in Novashine.

"But you are a politician," Novashine reasoned, looking up at him with confused optics. Ratchet shrugged.

"Perhaps so, but I have the capability to become a medic. Tell me, Novashine, have you ever wished to be someone other than who you are?" he asked honestly. Novashine's processor flashed to Chromia, a distant femme who had abandoned her privileged life as an upper crust femme to follow her mech into the military. Then she thought of Megatron, and wondered if she would have been able to abandon her caste for him. She frowned at that thought, knowing that _had he wanted her_, she would have abandoned her caste for him without a second thought.

"Come, now, Novashine. Surely my presence isn't bad enough to warrant a frown such as that one," Ratchet prodded with a small smile, trying to snap the femme out of her dark musings. The femme jolted a bit, then smiled up at him.

"Of course not, Ratchet. So does this mean that you had previous medical training?" Novashine asked, forcing her thoughts to stay with the date.

"The basics that every higher caste bot is trained with, but I have been learning on the side for vorns, and I fancy myself a quick learner. My mentor is a ridiculously skittish mech by the name of Fixit. He doesn't get much done," Ratchet claimed as he led her to the mid-distance docking lot.

"Ratchet, where are we going?" Novashine questioned as he handed two tickets over to the Iaconian Docking Lots' ticketmaster.

"We are going to Praxus to see the Crystal Gardens," the medic-in-training stated. The femme grinned at him.

"I haven't been there in such a long time!" she gushed, excited to see the gardens from Sunny's paintings again. Ratchet chuckled as he led her onto the small ship. It was smaller than the one that took her to Kaon. Instead of ten or fifteen rows of seats facing forward, this transport had two rows of seats that faced each other.

"I am aware. Your opiluk has been rather careful about not allowing you to leave Iacon lately, hasn't he?" Ratchet noted. Novashine grimaced.

"Yes. He is quite certain I'll get kidnapped and ransomed if I leave," she commented irritably. Ratchet snorted.

"I wouldn't put it past those ruffians who have been raiding distance ships for Energon. A lot of them have grown quite desperate. They say war is coming." Novashine scoffed and snorted.

"War? Honestly? The people of Cybertron are wise and civilized. We would not stoop to infighting like a bunch of organics," she said in a rather condescending voice.

"Yet we are having difficulties containing the gladiatorial matches."

Well, he had her there…

"Yes, but war? A gladiator match is quite different than a planet-wide Energon-wash. Do you think the people have it in them?" she questioned with a frown. Ratchet gave her a serious look.

"Yes, I do. The bots of the lower castes have grown desperate, which is causing a stir in every other caste. _Something _is coming. I am uncertain if it is war, but it will be something big."

"But to what end? I mean, it is impossible to destroy the caste system. Slag, the First Great War is what brought the caste system into being."

"Yes, but that system wasn't so… separated…"

"I suppose not, but what would the lower castes hope to gain from war? I mean… our castes aren't very good at compromise…"

"Perhaps if you attempted to get better at it, we wouldn't be as much of a threat, no?" a deep voice called out, catching the two upper caste bots' attention. Ratchet looked over at the dirty orange and green minibot with deep purple optics who was seated four seats down and across from them, but it was Novashine that responded to him.

"Have you ever tried to reason with those of the elite caste? It's like talking to a wall and a stupid wall at that!" she stated with a grimace. The mech blinked in surprise at that but was kept from replying by raucous laughter from the mech two seats down from us.

"Primus, I nevuh though' I'd hear a femme say tha' 'bout the uppuh castes!" the black and white mech said with a cheerful grin as he leaned out to look at her. Novashine rolled her optics.

"Yeah, well, you haven't had to spend a solar cycle with those snobby, gossip-mongering, idiotic—"

"I believe he gets the point, Nova," Ratchet broke in dryly. Novashine pouted at him.

"They _are_," she asserted in a whiny voice.

"Wai', wai', wai'. Ain't you the femme tha' got caught goin' ta Kaon?" the mech questioned as he moved to the seat right across from her. She scowled at him.

"Why won't everybot let that go? It's not like it's a crime to visit Kaon!" she snapped. The black and white mech's white optics brightened in amusement.

"Cuz you blue-sights _nevuh_ go ta Kaon. It's military c'ntroll'd," the mech said, humor in his tone.

"Yeah, well maybe I went there to compromise," she shot back. At this, the black and white mech howled in laughter, though Novashine didn't see how her remark was that funny.

"You alrigh', femme. Name's Jazz," the black and white mech said when he was finished laughing. Novashine grimaced, not completely sure why he was saying that she was alright.

"I am Novashine," she responded, raising her spark signature in greeting. Jazz returned the favor.

"And who's ya mechfrien'?" he continued.

"This is Ratchet, future Iacon CMO," she introduced with a grin. Ratchet rolled his optics.

"Hardly. I am a medical apprentice, due to get my stripes in a few orns," he corrected. Jazz shrugged.

"Well, ya know more 'bout a bot's 'nternals than meh. Aftuh all, I'm jus' a DJ fr'm Helix," Jazz said with a slag-eating grin.

"You're from Helix? I was under the impression they had evacuated because of the Tarn/Vos skirmishes," Ratchet stated. Jazz's grin grew soft and sad.

"Why d'ya think I'm 'ere? One a' mah friends moved ta' Praxus an' got us a good gig there."

"Oh," was Ratchet's only reply.

"Yeah. B'tween the Vos/ Tarn conflicts an' the Ejoornians' 'nvasions—"

"They invaded? Traachon never—"

"There's _a lot_ Traachon don't nevuh mention," Jazz interrupted. Novashine frowned at that, not liking where this was going. Traachon loved telling her these problems, loved telling her about how he planned on solving them. What had gone so wrong that he did not want his family unit to know?

"'Ey, now, don' stress it, swee'spark. Ev'rythin'll work ou' jus' fine," Jazz said with a comforting smile as he leaned back in his seat. "Now, you two bettuh buckle down. Ticketmastuh is signaling the ship, an' lemme tell ya, these things ain't a easy ride."

Novashine was about to ask what he meant when the ship lurched forward before jolting to a stop. The ship groaned a bit, metal shifting heavily before lurching forward again. Novashine squeaked when the ship suddenly shot upwards and curled into her date's side, fighting back the nausea rising in her tank. The last thing she wanted was to purge her morning Energon all over Ratchet. The apprentice medic scowled as he held the femme close. The ticketmaster had promised him one of the best ships. If this was the best, he shuddered at the thought of what the worst must be like. There was a few more moments of lurching movements before the ship finally settled out, either flying gently to Praxus or sitting on the ground without movement. Ratchet wasn't completely sure at this point, but the random jerks in random direction pointed to the former.

"Well, tha' could'a been worse," Jazz chirped when the ship settled.

"I fear to know your definition of the word," Ratchet muttered. Jazz only grinned at him.

"Now, li'l femme, tell meh 'bout ya trips ta Kaon. I've been wond'rin' 'bout tha' place."

Novashine looked up at Ratchet, who shrugged, before launching into a description of the Kaonian Docking Lots. She would tell him about Kaon, but she would not speak of her experiences there. Somehow, she didn't think it would be wise to allow the lower caste mechs and femmes to know of her run-ins with a military mech like Megatron. She was already the center of gossip in the Circle. The last thing she needed was to be the center of gossip in Praxus, too.

* * *

"That ride was atrocious. I should report the mech that sold me those tickets," Ratchet grumbled with a scowl. Novashine smiled at him as he led her through the streets of Praxus.

"I don't know. The company was nice," she responded, thinking back to Jazz and his parting words.

"_You come back, an' I'll show ya Praxus like nobot else can."_

It was an offer she planned to take up. Jazz had confided that he was a part-time Enforcer, meaning he knew the "backdoors of the city," so to speak. Novashine had always wanted to explore a city without being held back, but it was something a thief did in their free time, not the daughter of an important councilmech.

"And I had a fabulous space-heater," she continued with a grin. Ratchet looked away, trying to hide the light blue dusting his cheek plating. The ship had no insulation, meaning that the heat had dropped the second they moved over the Sea of Light. Novashine, having not worn any armor for this particular date, had immediately been affected by the drop in temperature, and Ratchet, the gentlemech he was, immediately offered his assistance. They both had to pointedly ignore the strange looks they got as she curled into his lap, taking in the heat his frame naturally gave off. Jazz, of course, had noted that if Ratchet needed a rest from her weight, he would have been more than happy to take the femme into his own lap for a few breems. This had been shot down by the medic rather quickly.

"I could not let you freeze while I myself was a perfect warmer," Ratchet said softly. He may have been a femme's mech back when he was younger, but those cycles had long past when he learned the importance of being a gentlemech, and as such, he had not held a femme like that in quite a while. Not that he didn't enjoy it, though.

"So, where should we go?" Novashine questioned as she looped her arm through Ratchet's.

"That all depends. I know you have been here once before, and I know you have done research on this area. Are there any places that caught your attention?"

"Well, there's an Energon café in the Praxian Market…"

"Then that shall be our destination," Ratchet said cheerfully as he led them in the direction of the market. "So… I have heard it on good authority that your opiluk wants to mate you as soon as possible…" Ratchet began hesitantly. Novashine grimaced at that.

"Yeah. He wants me bonded quickly. He thinks it will kill the rumors about my visits to Kaon," she said sulkily. She had grown to hate these conversations. They were all the same nowadays. They would bring up her inevitable bonding, then they would interrogate her over Sunny and Sides, then they would passively question her virtue, then they would comment on her life with them in the future, as if she would actually bond with a mech that spoke to her like that.

"I doubt that will kill the rumors. The Circle is too enamored with your scandal," Ratchet noted. Novashine scoffed at that.

"Indeed," she said lowly.

"If you were to bond, though… would you prefer the mech be in… any specific upper caste? I mean, you are in the political caste yourself, so I know you have a bit more freedom, but would you prefer a fellow political mech?" Novashine gave a small smile at this probing question.

"Well, I would prefer it not be a politician. Politicians are rather stuffy, don't you think?"

"Perhaps. And you would not wish to stay in Iacon, correct? I mean, you would be willing to move around if necessary?"

"I suppose so… I would like a bit of security, though. I would not like to be moving to another city every other orn," she responded with a secret smile. Perhaps he was not like all the other mechs. They always spoke of themselves, yet Ratchet asked about her, about her preferences. Was he actually willing to change for her?

"I see… and I don't suppose you want sparklings, do you?" he asked, peering down at her with a gentle smile. Novashine returned the smile with one of her own.

"Of course. I would not wish to have a quiet housing unit."

"Of course not. Three or four would be sufficient, don't you think?" Ratchet questioned, his spark lighting up happily. She seemed to have the same hopes in bonding that he did.

"I believe that would be a good number to aim for," she responded as they approached the market.

"And you would not mind your mate being of the medical caste?" he continued as he drew her to a stop just short of the market. Novashine was about to respond when her spark gave a gleeful pull, and a painfully familiar voice spoke out.

"I believe she is meant for a mech of a _much_ lower caste, don't you agree, Nova?"

"Lord Megatron," Ratchet greeted stiffly, not so subtly pulling Novashine to his side as he spoke. "I was not aware you were visiting Praxus. I was under the impression you were dealing with a certain militant Ejoornian group."

"Trust me, the organics from the Eshems Nebula will be dealt with. I am here because I was unneeded in Iacon. Optimus is taking the team on some sort of archeological dig. Not quite my area of expertise," Megatron claimed, his optics not leaving those of his femme. He couldn't help but notice how lovely she looked at the moment. She had decided against white paint the cycle, deciding instead to wear only gold, and it set her optics off very nicely.

"The last I checked, the Ejoornians were techno-organic, and your job was to defend Cybertron, not declare a war," Ratchet stated. Megatron scowled.

"Technicalities."

"I doubt Optimus or the council would see it—" Ratchet cut off abruptly, and his optics dimmed as he answered a personal comm link. "Frag," he muttered as he turned to his date. "Come, Novashine, we must return to Iacon. Optimus has requested my assistance on this dig he is working on."

"Oh, okay," Novashine replied, a little disappointed at the new development.

"There is no reason for Novashine to be forced to leave due to your own business. Instead, I will show her around the city, and I will ensure she gets home safely," Megatron interrupted as he wrapped a possessive arm around the femme before Ratchet could.

"No, this is _our_ date, and _I_ will see her home," Ratchet snapped as he stepped forward.

"Ratchet, it's okay," Novashine interrupted softly. The medic sent her a frown and received a smile in return. "Megatron can get me home, and we can continue this date at a later time. I enjoyed our conversations and the trip here. We can continue our last conversation over comm link when I get back to my housing unit."

Ratchet looked conflicted and stood silent for a few kliks before nodding curtly. "Very well. I will await your comm," he said in farewell. He sent Megatron one more glare before leaving, following his orders back to Iacon.

"Well, that was fairly easy. I do believe you _want_ to be alone with me," Megatron claimed in a teasing voice.

"Why are you here?" Novashine asked bluntly. Megatron smirked at that.

"Always to the point, aren't we? Very well. I followed you here because you do not belong with that mech," the Protectorate stated.

"And so you interrupted our date? What is wrong with you?" she snapped as she whirled around and stomped away from him. Megatron growled lowly as he followed her.

"As I saw it, you two were already talking about bonding. You move rather fast, don't you, Novashine?" he taunted as he strode beside her.

"Well, I have to do _something_ to get away from these rumors. Ratchet is a perfect match for me," she shot back as she walked. Megatron's spark roared angrily at that statement. Ratchet was not her match. _He_ was her match.

"And if there was another mech that would desire your spark?" he questioned. Novashine gave a snort.

"Ha! And who do ya have in mind, Megatron? You? Honestly, I think that would be one of the most humorous things I have heard in a long time!" she said in a falsely humored tone. Megatron growled at that, his spark simmering angry at how easily its match seemed to be brushing it off.

"What do you mean?" he demanded as he followed her down a mostly deserted street. She gave an irritated groan as she turned around, still walking backwards as she spoke and gestured mockingly at the mech following a few paces behind her.

"'You are a pet, a plaything! Nothing more than a means to my own beginning!' Do those words ring a bell, Megatron?" she yelled furiously, her hurt taking the form of anger as she fought back tears, her spark wrenching painfully at the memory those words brought up. Megatron's spark seemed to dim at those words, those hateful words that he had said to her so long ago. How did she still remember them? How did he explain to her that they were not the truth? But if they were not the truth, then what was? What was he to tell her?

"Perhaps I spoke those words long ago, but they no longer reflect my thoughts and beliefs," Megatron claimed as he sped up his strides to catch up to her. She scoffed as she turned into an alleyway that connected to one of the main streets of business in Praxus. She would be able to find a mech to transport her home in this area.

"You mean the great Megatron does not support his past words? Go figure," she hissed as she turned around, fully prepared to sprint out of the alleyway just to get away from this mech whom she loved and hated at the same time. She was about halfway down the alleyway now, and it would be a short run anyways. She was about to run when a hand wrapped around her left wrist and whirled her around, spinning her so that her back was against the building wall. Her optics widened when Megatron leaned forward, trapping her there.

"You are _mine_," he said deeply, his voice a low purr. Novashine's spark flipped delightfully at the comment. Then he continued. "Accept no more suitors, and plan no more dates. You shall move with me and work under my command at the Defense Force Central."

"No." It was as simple as that. She wasn't going to do it. Megatron looked surprised, but that look quickly changed to one of fury.

"Explain," he snarled, leaning in in an attempt to intimidate her. The movement only served to make her spark pull excitedly. 'His chest was so _close_ to hers!' her spark sang. She growled at him, though, refusing to let her feelings open her up to more pain.

"I will not be treated like some servant caste pleasure doll or some indentured slave! I am not a toy, and I am _not_ a soldier. _Shame_ on you for expecting me to give up _everything_ I have because _you_ told me to!" she snapped. Megatron scowled at her.

"I am the High Protector—"

"And _I_ am the daughter of a councilmech. We may be equal in caste, but castes do not matter to me!" she interrupted.

"You are a femme!"

"And you are a mech! If you are trying to make a point, then I suggest you have it made before I _leave,"_ she snapped.

"I am above you, and you _will_ submit," he roared. Then he saw the look on Novashine's face. He had never seen such a look of anger and hate, and he had certainly never thought to see it on his sparkmate's beautiful face.

His sparkmate. That was why he didn't want any other mech near her. She was _his sparkmate_. And he was about to lose her. He scrambled mentally, sending his battle computer into a frenzy as he searched for a solution, something to say that would fix the huge gash he had just put in his already crumbling relationship with this femme.

"I didn't mean that," he said quickly the second the words came to his processor. "I didn't mean it," he repeated as he tried to catch her optics with his own. It was an impossible feat, though, as her optics were locked on the ground beside his feet. A single tear slipped from her optic, and Megatron was quick to catch it, carefully wiping it away. He searched his mind for what he was supposed to do next but came up with no actions. He had never dealt with femmes this way before. He knew nothing of these matters, knowing only about killing and giving orders. He sighed as he leaned down, resting his helms against hers.

"Why do you do this to me?" she whispered. Megatron tried without success to ignore the pang in his spark.

"You are mine," he said stubbornly because, honestly, he didn't know what else there was to say. He could not understand the feelings rushing through his processor, and he did not know what the pullings in his spark fully signified. He had heard of sparkmates, everybot who had had any sort of younglinghood had, but he did not know the mechanics of proving that the femme in question _is_ you sparkmate. What if he was wrong, and Nova was simply a passing fancy, a challenge that he desired to conquer? He did not want to be stuck with a certain femme forever if she was not his true sparkmate. He grunted in frustration, unable to figure out what he should do, what he should say.

"I need to go. With Ratchet gone, my opiluk will—"

"One moment," Megatron interrupted when his internal comm link beeped.

**::Lord Megatron, the… relic has been restored, and the army is fully prepared to attack the Ejoorians.::**

**::Very good, Blackout. I shall be by in a few breems. I must take a certain femme back to her housing unit first.::**

**::Very well. All hail Megatron.::**

Megatron dropped the link and focused in on the femme before him.

"Come. I must take you home," Megatron said abruptly. Novashine frowned, wanting nothing more than to hear him say something to revive her hope in him, hope that he could care for her like she cared for him. He remained silent, though, only gathering her into his arms as he ushered her back to the uncrowded street they had come from. He hooked an arm around her knees and tightened the one around her shoulders. There was the sound of a minor transformation before Megatron took off into the air in a burst of noise and power. Novashine let out a high-pitched shriek before going quiet, choosing to focus on holding onto Megatron's armor with every fiber in her body rather than voicing her displeasure. Megatron, for his part, had to hold back the purr rising in his throat at the feel of his pet holding onto him so. It was how it was meant to be.

* * *

The trip back was shorter than he had hoped for it to be, and he found himself frowning as he set his femme on her pedes in front of her housing unit. She wobbled a bit, giving Megatron a reason to hold her waist, then her optics focused on the tall mech.

"That… that… it was…" she vented heavily as she attempted to realign her equilibrium circuits.

"It was magical, right?" he purred, causing the femme to shudder and step away.

"No. I… I have to go. Rumors will grow," she mumbled as she stepped away, swaying lightly as she moved. "Thank you for taking me home. Do me a favor, though, and do not come back. I'm tired of the pain."

Megatron's spark squeezed painfully as he watched her stagger into her housing unit. Why was it that he could not speak around her? Why did he only cause her pain? It wasn't intentional, and he knew it would not put him in her good graces, so why?

"Fraggit!" he snarled as he punched the wall beside her door, causing a rather large and garish dent. He gave a heaving vent before walking away. He had to figure out what his "brother" found in that dig site, and then he had to figure out how to defeat the Ejoorians while trying to fight a defensive war.

* * *

"I'm home," Novashine called out pointlessly. She felt she needed to fill the silence in the housing unit, and that had been the only thing to come to her mind. She grimaced as she moved into the housing unit, trying with all her might not to dwell on the horrible wreck the last solar cycle had been. Primus, what a nightmare! She hadn't even been in Praxus for a breem when Megatron appeared, and to make things worse, her date had to leave. Not exactly something a debutante like her was expecting. She gave another sigh at the selfish thinking. Should she really think like that about Ratchet? After all, he was the closest thing she had to a potential bondmate at the moment.

'_That's not true. Megatron and Sideswipe want to bond with you, too,'_ her mind sang to her. She groaned as she mounted the stairs and started up toward her berthroom. Really, she shouldn't be too upset. Ratchet had pretty much asked for her spark last cycle, and if she were to bond with him, she would have to get used to him leaving her abruptly like this… She hummed irritably as she moved down the hall toward her room, but she slowed when she heard two males voices coming from the room at the end of the hall. She knew both of the voices, recognizing one at Emirate Xaaron's voice and the other as her own opiluk's voice. It shouldn't surprise her, really, seeing as it was in his office, but she had been expecting him to be at some sort of meeting. He was never home when she was anymore. She frowned as she approached the mostly-closed door noiselessly and sat down just outside it.

"And would you believe that Vos is requesting medical assistance?! Primus, the fraggers started their own war and are begging for our help! As if we would lend assistance to a bunch of red-sight, military mechs! I warned Optimus; I told him I _refuse_ to help those lowlifes. Perhaps it will do the rest of Cybertron good to let them kill each other off."

"Come now, General Traachon. They cannot be all that bad," Xaaron reasoned, though Novashine could see that he didn't really mean it.

"A military mech is a military mech. They're all disgusting filth without emotions or morals."

"True, but they are also the ones protecting us from the Ejoorians at the moment."

"They are doing a terrible job at it, too. Primus, I hired Megatron for a reason, and he sure as Pit better not let me down."

"And if he does? What of Novashine in the event of a war?" Traachon was silent for a few moments after Xaaron asked his question. Novashine felt herself stiffening at the lack of response, wondering if it was because he was worried for her safety or because he didn't know where to dump her in the case of an attack.

"I could not say. I suppose I would send her wherever they send all the other femmes. Her optics will keep her caste well-known, and her designation will keep her heritage known. I could probably leave her with her bodyguard and expect her to stay in perfect health."

"Just what _is_ her relationship with those twins?" Xaaron asked suddenly. Traachon gave a noncommittal grunt as he waved his hand in a flippant manner.

"I honestly couldn't tell you. Sibling relationship or romantic, I don't particularly care. As long as she is mated with a high caste mech and sparks a mech to inherit, I could care less."

"And if she was in love with one of them?"

"Then they would have to return to Kaon where they belong." Novashine put a hand over her mouth at the uncaring words. She couldn't stay there anymore. She couldn't. She rose to her pedes in preparation to leave, but her creator's next words caused her to pause.

"They have found some sort of relic at the dig site," he said, sounding kind of bored by this fact.

"Twelve, by what I hear. Optimus just reported in, correct?"

"Thirteen relics, and yes, he did."

"Interesting pair, Optimus and Megatron. They come from opposite castes, yet they get along so well."

"I believe that is due to Sentinel Prime's tutorship, though. He has taken the two under his wing rather effortlessly, saying something to the effect of them being brother now. The old mech is always spouting such drivel, though."

"My, you are quite harsh, Traachon. Rather bitter, too. Pray tell, what has made you this way," Xaaron goaded with a grin. Traachon scowled.

"Perhaps it is because my planet is filled with such unneeded unrest. Perhaps it is because of the threat of alien invasion. Perhaps it is my femme creation, who sees fit to defy me in every way."

"You are too hard on her, Traachon. She is still young."

"That is no reason to act like a… well, a femme without morals."

"She has hardly acted as such."

"I disagree, but that is beyond the point."

Novashine shook her helm with a scowl as she strode away from the office. She entered her berthroom and allowed the door to close behind her. There was no point in locking it. Sunstreaker and Sideswipe would be back once Sunstreaker's art show finished. He was apparently donating a number of his pieces to a small museum in upper Iacon. Not much of a new-paintjob event, but enough to require his person presence, and since Novashine had not gone, she had sent Sideswipe to play peacemaker between his brother and the members of the Cybertronian upper crust. They would be there for the rest of the solar cycle, then they would return during the lunar cycle. She hummed lightly as she contemplated what to do in the meantime. Something that didn't require thinking… she _really_ didn't want to think…

Surfing the public news comm it was.

She hopped onto her berth and lay back, getting comfortable, and the next second, she was scanning the public comms. She immediately tuned into her favorite public comm: Andromeda's _Around Cybertron_. There was a brief moment where the public casting system checked Novashine's link signature as Andromeda was strictly an upper caste reporter before the femme's lilting voice filled her processor.

**::Well, mechs and femmes, onto our next story. You'll never guess who was spotted in Praxus today. That's right gentlebots, it was our own Liaison-turned-medic, Ratchet, and our own debutante diva, Novashine! The mech and femme were spotted getting pretty close in the docking lot, and sources says she spent the whole trip from Iacon to Praxus curled up in the mech's lap, and you can be sure that **_**he**_** wasn't complaining. After their exhausting trip, the two were seen walking toward the Praxian Market, and my reporter heard Ratchet asking some pretty invasive questions. In fact, here's a lovely picture of the two new lovebots!**

**-A picture of Novashine smiling warmly at Ratchet, who was smiling quite bashfully back down at her, flitted across her processor-**

**Does this mean that there will be a bonding ceremony soon? We cannot be certain. After all, High Lord Protectorate Megatron was spotted not breems later splitting up the dream couple. Our hero, Ratchet, was apparently called away on urgent business, and Novashine headed off in the direction of Praxus Main, but she didn't make it before Megatron trapped her against a wall, getting rather scandalously close. We're not too sure to make of this new development, but perhaps you can decide for yourself.**

**-A picture of Megatron and Novashine flashed across her processor. She was pressed firmly against the wall, and Megatron had his helm pressed tenderly to her own. The shot hid her tears, though.-**

**So, the gentlemech or the barbaric one? We're not sure which one to root for, but we'd love to hear your feedback on it! Call into our station for a chance to have your opinion featured on the air! **

**This just in, femmes and gentlemechs! There has been an attack on Simfur! That's right, gentlebots! The Ejoorians have finally launched their opening assault. Stay tuned to get the up front facts! Oh! It looks like Lord Megatron has taken a hit. He appears to be unharmed, though. He—::**

Novashine pointedly dropped the link. They were under attack. So did this mean they were at war? Was she in danger? She frowned at how much she didn't care at the moment. Surely she should be at least a little worried… But no, there was nothing. She gave a deep sigh before letting her systems slow a bit. The Defense Force would take care of everything. And with that thought in mind, she allowed her systems to drop into recharge.

* * *

Novashine didn't know what was causing her to come out of recharge, but it was rather insistent. Her processor was sending her strange warnings: something about another entity in the room. She blearily onlined her optics then gave a surprised squeal whilst falling out of her berth. She quickly scrambled to her pedes, taking in the mech that had been standing beside her berth… watching her recharge… She frowned.

"Megatron?" she asked, confused. The mech smirked at her, optics deepening a bit in color.

"That is normally what I am called," he responded, his voice filled with amusement.

"Why… Why are you here? Weren't you injured in battle?" Novashine questioned as she looked over his perfect frame. No scratches, no chipped paint, no dings or dents. It was as if he had just gotten his armor detail or something rather than going through an intense battle. Megatron, for his part, looked unaffected by her question.

"That is irrelevant. I am healed now—"

"Yeah, but _how_?" Novashine interrupted, sounding rather worried. He grunted irritably, disliking that she had interrupted him.

"By an outside source. A very _powerful_ outside source."

"I don't understand, Megatron. Why are you here?" she repeated with a frown. Megatron's smirked grew, and Novashine felt dread worm its way into her spark. He moved languidly, slowly walking around the berth toward her. Novashine moved in tandem, carefully keeping the berth between them.

"I am here for you, of course," he responded. Novashine shook her helm.

"I do not understand. Why me?" she questioned. Megatron's smirked melted into a gentle smile, one that Novashine had never expected to see on his face plates, and her spark gave a gentle tug at the sight of it.

"Because you are mine, and I plan on taking _everything_ that is mine. He has told me how," Megatron purred as he ran a claw down her cheek plating with gentleness that was not normally seen in him.

"Who is 'he?' What do you plan to take?" Novashine asked blankly, fearing the answer. Megatron gave a feral grin.

"_Everything," _he growled. Novashine's optics widened as she pulled away from his claw.

"What are you talking about?! Are you insane?!" she demanded, spark pounding and optics bright in fear. Megatron started rounding the berth again, and the femme moved in time with him, trying to keep that weak defense in between them.

"I am the rightful ruler of Cybertron. I can bring peace through my leadership," he stated as if it made all the sense in the world.

"And what about the people of Cybertron? Do we get a choice in your plans?" she spat.

"Of course. They can join my cause, or they can die." Novashine's spark almost stopped at that.

"So peace through tyranny?" she asked breathlessly, horrified by his words.

"Yes," he hummed. "And you shall rule by my side," he added as he stopped at the side of her berth to gaze over at her with a look of twisted affection in his crimson optics.

"I can't do that, Megatron. I will not help you kill innocent people!" she disagreed firmly. Megatron growled angrily.

"You refuse my courtship suit?"

"You never offered one! You offered me death or the life of a murderer!" she cried out.

"You are meant to rule beside me!" he argued.

"I am _not_ meant to live a life like _that_," she denied thickly. Megatron roared as he reached across the berth and captured the femme just under her left arm. His claws easily pierced the chest plating beside her underarm, and his other claws grabbed the right side of her waist, creating gashes there as he yanked her onto the berth so that her lower body was limp on the berth while her upper body was held painfully against his own.

"Feel that, femme!" he roared as he pressed his armored chest against her plated one. Her spark pulled toward his, twisting in pain at being injured by the one it was made for.

"Stop it, Megatron!" she cried out, trying not to scream at the pain his claws were causing her.

"Feel the pull, femme! We are made for each other!" he bellowed, shaking her frame.

"You're hurting me!" she shrieked.

"You belong to me!" he yelled.

"Let me go!" He gave a soundless roar before ripping his claws from her body and walking away, ignoring the sound of her crashing face-first off the berth and onto the ground. She made a pathetic, pained sound as she tried in vain to crawl toward the door. Her right leg refused to move, though, and her left arm refused to hold her weight.

"Master said you would be unable to listen to reason. He said that I would have to force you, that you have to simply take what you want." He turned and fixed the whimpering femme with a calculating look. "Do I need to force you rule by my side?" he purred as he moved to her side, picking her up with a strange sort of gentleness. "I can do that, you know," he added as he cradled her damaged frame to his own chassis with a twisted tenderness, running the back of an energon-stained claw down her cheek until it rested lightly over her spark.

"Opi!" she screamed as loudly as she could, though she knew it would do no good.

"Haven't you heard, Novashine? Your opiluk is at a meeting, and your danniluk is at a party. You will disappear with me this cycle, and nobot will miss you."

"Opi! Danni!" she continued shrieking, praying for a miracle.

"Shut up, femme!" Megatron growled, plunging his claws into her back, which elicited an agonized scream from her.

"Sideswipe! Sunny!" she screeched.

"That's _enough_," Megatron growled before forcing his lips against hers, silencing her with a searing, painful kiss.

"Get off her!" Sideswipe roared as he rushed into the room, both blades drawn. Megatron jumped back from his femme to avoid either of them getting sliced. Sunstreaker and Sideswipe both took positions in front of the injured femme, both glaring at the silver mech that had injured her. Megatron ran his current situation through his new battle computer, compliments of his new master and decided that this battle was not one he could win. The twins were very good at close-combat and would have an easier time maneuvering and attacking in the small room. He scowled at them.

"I will be back for my sparkmate," he growled, then he turned and jumped out the window, transforming and jetting off without hesitation. There would be another chance to capture and reason with Novashine. For now, he needed to focus on his first order from his master: build an army, and he knew just where to start.

* * *

"Nova? Nova, I need you to say something," Sideswipe begged, as he leaned over her, hands suspended above her. He didn't want to touch her and add to her pain, but he knew it was necessary.

"Hurts," she whimpered, crying out in pain when Sideswipe lifted her into his arms. He gave a single nod to Sunstreaker, who still had his blades out. The golden mech led the way out, prepared to attack anything that looked like a threat. They would not allow their charge to be hurt again.

* * *

**Angel897:** Thank you. Glad you did. :)

**xXRetrobotXx:** Lol. Yeah, the Hatchet is still working on that tough part of his personality. It will slowly grow as he gets fed up with how bots treat his mentor, Fixit. And he's trying to read those emotions, at least! I think he made a very good step in understanding those emotions this chapter. After all, admittance is the first step. ^-^

**Suki-Angel91494:** Well… eh heh, if there's one think to say about Megatron, it's that he's possessive. ^^;; I'm kinda loving The Ratchet/Nova pairing, too. Plus, I made Ratchet such a gentlemech in this one. Such a sweetspark! X3

**Guest:** I dunno if I'll do that, but we'll see. :) I don't like the Novashine/twins pairing so much, but I think that's because of how their relationship works. Well… working out the logic, they'd have to be a packaged deal. Two mechs, but one spark. If you just bond with Sunny or just with Sides, it's like marrying part of a man, you know what I mean?

**Sunstreaker's Squishy:** I just noticed that your username is "Sunstreaker's Squishy" yet you have an image of Megatron as your profile pic… should we be worried? 0.o

Yeah, that's what I was aiming for when I wrote the gossip-mongers. I actually pictured two of the girls from my high school that were always like that. Stirring up the gossip mill every day.

In number, yes Ratchet is old enough to be her father, but remember that Cybertronian culture is different than ours. They live basically forever. Before the war, the only way a bot died was by Energon depravation. Most viruses were curable, and broken down parts could be replaced, so age and relationships are viewed differently than on Earth. :)

Well, in the canon without castes, Megatron's optics were white before the Fallen got into his mind. I think it's interesting because it symbolizes his internal change. Fascinating. :D

**Lovely Rain Dancer:** This means I'm doing very good at characterization. :D I hope you don't like Megatron. He's not very likeable right now. Kind of a rude fragger, stabbing her like that? :\

**Luna Uchiha666:** Yup. He doesn't quite understand what those feelings meant. Poor guy. :( And hey, you were right! He acted on his feelings! ^-^ Dunno if that was how you were wanting it to happen, though… 9_9

**AUTOBOT NIGHTMARE: **Lol. I bet I blew your mind even _more_ with this chapter! The joys of being a writer. This is true, though. Gossip is really annoying in the way that it's always there, too. :\ It's part of the reason why there's so many suicides nowadays, too. :(

XD Aw, I always feel so bad for Ratchet because of that! I love ratchet/OC fics for that reason. Poor Ratchet is old by human definition, but by Cybertronian definition, he's in the prime of life! I mean, look at Chromia and Ironhide! They still have a relationship, and he's as old as Ratch! I love you, ratchet! If would bond with you if I were a Cybertronian and you were real! DX

**Link's Rose:** Lol. Megsy's jealous of _everyone_. *eye roll* but, I don't think this Troy will turn out the same way as the classic. Megs isn't the type to go with the flow. :\

**Guest:** Okay, now I know you've asked that before. I mean, here's your chapter, but… everytime I get your review, I get this weird sense of déjà vu. So you know.

**AndromedaAI:** bet you didn't know there was a canon character named Andromeda! :D Maybe he's jealous because the twins got to show off for her and he didn't 0.o I was actually shaping that ball of England's coming of age balls. I dunno if they still have them, but they used to throw a large coming-out ball for a girl when she came of marrying age. I wish they had those, too, but I doubt I'd find a guy. There's no nice guys anymore. They're either gay or taken. =_=

**Agent Or4ng3:** Lol. True, true. And you'd probably be a bit too… _squishy_. Yuck. You know, I'm seriously debating it… Still deciding… And don't worry. They're gonna meet up eventually. I', already planning that meeting. ;D

**Golden Eagle 603:** You predicted something big? Meet climatic twist #1! :D Megatron is having personal issues. Poor guy needs to see a psychologist before he develops a… glitch *snort* I'm gonna put some twin/Nova in, just for you, but I'm afraid it won't be for a few more chapters. Is that all good?

**THebookfan09:** Honestly? I really wanted to, just to write spazzy, overprotective Megatron. We will see that later on, though. I already got it planned. *evil grin*

Jazz: No, li'l mech! Really? You'd do tha' ta meh? *sad, hurt, pouty Jazz face*

Dreadwing: I ain't afraid of some squishy femme. *crosses arms*

JAAAAZZZZ! DREADWIIIING!

*Both jolt*

WHAT DID I TELL YOU ABOUT HARRASSING MY MANAGER!? HE'S GONNA QUIT! STOP IT!

If they bother you, just let me know and I'll reformat them into femmes *nod nod*

I love my cameos. You know that, though. Slag, look how many cameos were in TaCO. I just love throwing in people… people would recognize. Whoa! Awkward word repeat! :D

Lol! Oh, but I love torturing my characters. Pit, look what I'm doing to Novashine! Look what I did to Optimus and Moonstrike last story! I'm kinda mean to my OCs and their beaus. XD

So you love the Circle femmes, huh? *eye twitch* Jazz, Dreadwing? He's all yours. Save a piece for Ratchet.

**Sweettea1:** Well… he came around…? Finally? He even came by her house to express his feelings! Super sweet mech right there! :D

And as you can see, poor Nova's date didn't go well at all. ^^;;

**Autobotgirl2234:** Yeah. She's been the center of gossip for long enough that she doesn't want to be like the others. :\

**Iceshadow911247:** Lol. Then you must've hated this chapter, cuz it was _really_ mind-blowing ^^;; I had fun with this chapter. And I haven't read it, but I have friends that have, and they all say the same thing, "It's written out porn in a book." So I don't really wanna read it. *shrug* Be a salmon; go against the flow.

I love your reviews! XD "Megatron got DENIED." Jus' a little. Can't blame her, though. XD

**LunarShadowAngel:** Not too good. Not the best date she experienced. :\

**Hubero:** Hey, hey! A new, old fan! Hidy! Ya know, I actually started this to learn how to write bad guys. I think I'm kinda falling in love with Megs myself, simply because I know what y'all don't about him, but still… And the other goal was to learn how to write Sunny. I have the hardest characterizing him. :\ I'm doing good in this one with him, though! :D

It always seemed logical for them to be in a lower caste, frankly. Sunny and Sides don't have the refinement that the other Autobots have, meaning they didn't have the strict upbringing that an upper caste youngling would have. So… logic. Plus, Sides wouldn't be so forward if he were a blue-sight.

I'm very glad you like it, and I hope I can keep your attention. :) Ciao!

**Mrs. Knockout:** Well, welcome to the Gladiator's Spark club! I am glad you read it and delighted you like it! I hope this chapter is up to par, and that I keep your fanship! :) *hug*! ^-^

* * *

*evil grin*

Your mind = blown

Sooooo… Megatron has made that noticeable transition from mean guy that ignores his spark to creepy stalker guy that doesn't quite know what to do with those feelings. And he has finally started on that negative path. For those who are wondering, the who excavation dig and relic thing was canon. Here's the sitch:

The science team discovered some ruins at an old dig sight on Cybertron, so Optimus, being the super curious and uber awesome scientist he is, calls together an excavation team to dig everything up FOR SCIENCE! Anywho, they discovered pieces of twelve relics and a fully intact thirteenth relic. Megatron appeared and had that thirteenth relic taken to his quarters. You guys know where this is going, right? Those twelve relics were remnants of the twelve primes, and that last fully-intact relic was the sarcophagus thingy of the Fallen. Megsy has the relic cleaned up before he is forced away to battle (The Ejoorians attack). Megatron is severely wounded in this battle and makes it all the way back to his quarters before passing out. The relic then uses the last of its power to heal Megatron. That's when Fallen was like, "Yo, I can give you power, and I can help you defeat the Ejoorians (who were actually attacking Cybertron. They were the reason the Defense Force was actually created)." ... and thus the ending of this chapter and the beginning of the Second Great War. Lovely, right?

Lunar Mist did her research ;D

And no, Novashine is not dead. I have yet to kill a main OC, and I don't plan to start now. *nod nod*

Review! :D Let me see just how much you hate Megatron. Primus, I love writing plot twists.


	6. Chapter 6

1) Sorry it's so late. I have had... well, a very long last couple of weeks. I hit a low, and didn't feel like writing at all. Luckily, my mother was there to help me through it... Which leads me to my next deal... Guess who's gonna be an aunt?! XD

2) I'm gonna have to write two spin-offs, aren't I? One where The twins get with Nova and one where Ratch does... Is this truth?

3) Fixit appears! Might I say that I really love my medic OC? He's like a fail version of First Aid. You'll understand in this chapter XD

* * *

Chapter 6

4,822 words

* * *

Sideswipe paced anxiously back and forth in the lobby of the medical clinic, his spark hammering in his chest. Megatron had done this to her, the same Megatron that he had once believed to have feelings for her. That belief was now completely crushed, though. That monster held no positive feelings for his ward, and the fact that she was in that medbay clinging to life kept the red gladiator-turned-bodyguard from dashing out of the clinic and hunting down the fragger that had done this to her.

"He declared war on the Science Division," Sunstreaker suddenly announced softly. The attention of the five upper caste strangers as well as Sideswipe turned to the golden twin, who was slouched in one of the many waiting chairs. His optics were dim from exhaustion, as were Sideswipe's; they had been there for at least two joors as the medic known as Fixit attempted to repair all the damage on Novashine's frame as quickly as possible.

"Megatron has?" Sideswipe questioned then cursed when his brother nodded. He paused in his pacing when he received a generalized message from the big bot himself. "Optimus has sent out a call-to-arms. He wants any battle-experienced mechs to join his new army," Sideswipe said blankly before fixing his brother with a _look_.

"No," was Sunstreaker's simple reply. Sideswipe vented heavily as he looked over at the medbay doors, the ones that hid Novashine's recovering frame.

"We could take Nova with us. She'd be safe around all those warriors," he reasoned. Sunstreaker scowled.

"No. I will not join some pointless battle and lose my paintjob for a war that probably won't last an orn," the golden mech snapped. Sideswipe sighed, fighting back his sense of duty. Sunny had a point: the war probably wouldn't last long, and he needed to focus his energies on keeping Megatron away from Novashine once this was all over. Sideswipe sent his brother a nudge over the bond and received a loving one in reply. The red mech was about to speak when the front door located to their left opened to allow a familiar mech entrance.

"Ratchet?" Sideswipe called out in surprise. The chartreuse mech paused in his steps and looked over at the twins in surprise. His optic ridged furrowed in confusion as he moved to the area that they had unintentionally claimed as "their area."

"What are you two doing here? Needing a checkup?" he questioned, glancing from one twin to the other curiously.

"No. Novashine got hurt by Megatron. The slagger thinks she belongs with him," Sideswipe growled, optics narrowing furiously as he looked over at the doors that hid his charge. "What about you?" he asked as he slowly turned his gaze back to the mech who was courting his charge.

"I work here as an apprentice medic," he responded as he sent a worried look to the medbay. "I'm going to help Fixit with Nova's injuries. She would want somebot she knew repairing her," he claimed as he hurried over to the door. His pump seemed to stop when he stepped through the door.

Novashine was on her back, slightly suspended off the berth by five straps that supported her helm, her shoulders, the small of her back, her thighs, and her calves. Ratchet knew that this meant that she had received a back injury that was bad enough that Fixit didn't want her to have any weight on her back—even her own. There was a rather large puddle of energon below her, and it appeared to still be leaking just barely from her back. There was a steady stream coming from her right side just at the curve of her waist, and Fixit appeared to be hurriedly trying to stop the leaking coming from her the left half of her upper chassis. The right side of her faceplates was dented from some sort of impact, and her optics were offline due to the medically-induced stasis. An intra-linear energon line replenished her systems directly, and another IL line sent coolant through her systems, suggesting that her cooling systems had glitched or had gone completely offline for some reason or another.

Ratchet moved forward as he mentally assessed her injuries, glancing at the monitor that tracked her spark beats, pump motions, and processor activity. The first thing he needed to do was patch the primary energon line that was leaking in her side. Fixit would take care of her chest, but the energon lines that had been pierced there weren't as detrimental as the ones in her waist. She appeared to be frighteningly close to losing use of her right leg; not a good thing, even for a bot that could afford a new leg to be made. The soon-to-be medic worked swiftly and efficiently, working without hesitation or worry. This was _his_ medbay, his realm. Nobot offlined in here if he worked on them, and they never left in any pain. Fixit had called him a prodigy. Lookup, the acting nurse, had called him a medical genius. He personally liked to think he was both, though he was too modest to truly say so aloud.

"Ratchet, we need to take care of her back. I've patched up most of the wound to staunch the energon flow, but it is still leaking," Fixit said softly, causing Ratchet's optic to twitch. How had this mech managed to stay afloat as a medic? The mech had absolutely no support strut.

"Very well. I'm done here. Let me check the wound on her chest real quick," he responded without thinking. Fixit stepped back to allow Ratchet access to the wound he had just finished patching. Once again, Ratchet was struck with irritation at the mech's reticence. It was as if Ratchet was the mentor and Fixit the trainee. Ratchet grimaced at the below par patch job, but decided it was well enough. He would go back and re-patch it once her finished with her back wound. For the moment, the wound was not leaking energon, and Ratchet would accept that until the other wound was patched to his satisfaction.

"We must turn her over. You flip her legs. I will care for her torso," Ratchet ordered curtly. Fixit nodded as he scurried to stand beside her thighs. Ratchet gently wrapped an arm around her upper back and another around her hips, trying to avoid her injuries. Fixit placed both hands on her upper legs and looked at Ratchet for the signal to turn her over. They would have to careful as they turned her to keep from opening the patch-job on her waist.

"One, two, three," Ratchet counted down, and they gently flipped her over in sync. Ratchet gently pulled off the patches one-by-one, attacking the deep gouges with disinfectant to fight against rust before welding thin pieces of metal over the wounds to seal them shut. Her body would absorb the metal as it healed, turning it into new plating. As he repaired her injuries, Ratchet couldn't help but feel hate for Megatron rise in his spark. He was supposed to be their High _Protector_. He was supposed to protect femmes like Novashine, not attempt to kill them. Just what had he hoped to gain by hurting her? What had he been trying to prove?

**::Optimus Prime to Ratchet:: -Optimus**

**::You should really add the "Prime" part to your comm signature if you're going to introduce yourself as such:: -Ratchet**

**::I… cannot help it. I do not feel as if I should be addressed as such:: -Optimus**

**::Optimus, you have the glyph on your helm that designates you as one of the primes. Accept it and live with it, or at least learn to deal. Now, I'm kind of busy at the moment. What do you want?:: -Ratchet**

**::I… I was actually curious as to whether you would consider becoming my Chief Medical Officer of the Autobots:: -Optimus**

Ratchet's movements stopped for a klik before continuing.

**::I believe you are making a bit of a premature decision, Prime. I am still in training:: -Ratchet**

**::Your scientific and medical discoveries are already famous, Ratchet. You discovered a way to treat cosmic rust **_**and**_** you managed to find a way to support a femme's spark when it was dimming during unstable sparkancies. Fixit has informed me that you teach him more than he teaches you. You take control in the medbay, as a CMO would, and you are **_**good**_** at it. I have faith in you, my friend, so I suppose to real question is do you have faith in **_**yourself**_**?:: -Optimus Prime**

**::I notice you suddenly changed your signature… I cannot leave Novashine here…:: -Ratchet**

**::I am afraid that excuse will not stand, as I am certain she will not object to living on base. So your answer to my offer?:: -Optimus Prime**

**::… Very well… I will speak with her when she comes online after the surgery:: -Ratchet**

He could tell that Prime was about to question her situation, so he dropped the link and offlined his comm system. At the moment, his prospective mate was most important. He smiled at that thought. Novashine, Ratchet's mate. She would stay with him in his clinic, the one he planned to buy and support with his own saved up fortune from his days in the senate. They would have sparklings to love and care for, at least three. Two femmes and a mech. The mechling would want to be a scientist or a medic like his opiluk, and his two little femmes would want for nothing. It didn't matter what occupation they wanted to have; Novashine's status as a political caste femme would ensure that they could do whatever they wanted to make a living.

"Her back is finished. Help me flip her back over, and I'll fix your fritzy patch job on her chest plating," Ratchet stated bluntly. Fixit only shook his helm with an amused smile as he moved to obey his strangely superior subordinate.

* * *

**::Sideswipe and Sunstreaker to Medbay One::**

Sideswipe was the first to move when he heard the order over the small clinic's intercom unit. He leapt to his pedes and skated over to the medbay door that Ratchet had disappeared through a quarter joor ago, Sunstreaker following after him at a slower pace in order to keep face.

"Nova? Novashine?" Sideswipe called out in a worried voice as he entered the bay. His optics lighted on the offline figure suspended just a few inches above the berth. He moved slowly to her side, frowning as he moved. "Novashine? Sweetspark?" he asked slowly.

"She's in stasis. She can't hear you," Ratchet stated as he walking in from the back office.

"Stasis?" Sideswipe repeated, horrified. Mechs in the gladiatorial circuit only went into emergency stasis when they were about to offline from severe damage. Novashine was dying? His spark sped up in terror at that thought. No! She couldn't die! She was his femme, his charge! Who would he protect? Who would he cuddle during the lunar cycles? Who would chase away his dreams of the early battles in his life, of the bullies that beat him and his brother up? Who would smile at him and roll her optics when he flirted with her?

He hadn't even kissed her seriously yet. They had only been playful kisses. Sure, he was certain he didn't stand a chance in the fight to be her sparkmate, but he wanted to kiss her and be serious about it. He wanted her to know that he would respect her boundaries and be happy with their guardian bond.

"She's fine. I will wake her up when her frame is a bit stronger. I called you in here because she appears to be having nightmares, and I know you hold a guardian bond," Ratchet stated. Sideswipe blinked at him in surprise.

"Are you telling me to recharge with your potential mate?" he asked with a sly grin. Ratchet scowled at him.

"Nightmares are not beneficial to her healing frame, and you can sway her emotions with that bond. I am a medic first and her potential mate second. Calm her, and protect her as she rests. The only catch is that no weight may be placed on her wounds on her back. The wounds there are the deepest, and we cannot chance the wounds opening again."

"Gotcha. We'll keep her safe, doc," Sideswipe stated with a slag-eating grin, still stuck on the fact that this mech wanted him to recharge with Novashine. He would have to make sure he brought it up anytime he was in this mech's presence. Sunstreaker, tired of waiting, shoved past his brother and climbed onto the recently cleaned berth on Novashine's left side. The femme was suspended enough to keep her back from touching the berth, but she was close enough that Sunstreaker was able to cuddle up to her and rest his left arm on her stomach plating as he opened the guardian bond with her. Sideswipe's grin softened as he moved to the opposite side and matched his brother's movements perfectly, allowing the bond to fully open so that they were both sending her positive emotions, protecting her from her own frightening thoughts and nightmares. She needed rest, and with the twins on either side of her, her spark rate slowed, and her dreams grew even. There would be no fear when Sideswipe and Sunstreaker were around.

* * *

"I refuse to send those red-sight, sky-loving, emotionless scrapheaps in Vos assistance of any kind!"

"High Councilor Traachon, you must see reason. By refusing them aid, you are taking Tarn's side, a betrayal that High Commander Starscream is not likely to overlook."

"Optimus, I fail to see how a science mech such as yourself is even here, seeing as this is a meeting of the _political mechs_."

"Traachon! Have you not read the discovery? Optimus is a prime."

"Oh, honestly, Xaaron! Optimus is _hardly_ prime material!"

Optimus scowled at the blue mech as he mocked and laughed at his newly discovered status. The science caste mech had had an achingly long cycle, to be perfectly honest. Not only had he been betrayed by a mech that had easily grown to be like a brother to him, but said mech had also declared war on his caste, as if they had never been friends in the first place. Though he had received partial confirmation on Ratchet's part, he had discovered that something was wrong with one of his dear friends. Well, perhaps friend no longer applied to Novashine. In all honesty, he had been far too busy to make time for her in the passing cycles, too focused on his discoveries, reports, and Elita, the femme that he was _attempting_ to woo…

Hearing the High Councilor scoff at his newly found position seemed to be the energon coating on the proverbial oilcake.

"Traachon, you are not thinking tactically; you are simply projecting your prejudice and hate onto Vos, who is undeserving of such ire. If we do not come to their aid while we still can, somebot else _will_, and in this case, I am certain that assistance will come from Megatron, and once he has assisted them, he will be able to draw them into the army he is forming." Traachon scoffed derisively.

"Honestly, Optimus," he said in a condescending voice. "Do you honestly think this war will last more than a few orns? This is simply a lower caste throwing a hissy fit. It has happened before in the past, and like those other times, we will beat down the resistance. Designations will be taken from those who opposed us, and things shall return to how they were." Optimus scowled.

"This is different than those riots, Traachon! Surely, you see this! These bots have something to fight for and a bot that can lead them in battle! We have upper caste mechs and femmes that have never seen a cycle of battle! We will be overrun and completely defeated!"

"Doubtful. The Iacon army may be small, but it can handle a few slaves and red-sights," Xaaron broke in.

"I speak not of small opposing armies, Xaaron! I speak of whole cities of mechs, marching into battle and destroying upper-caste city-states! Mechs will be slaughtered! Femmes and sparklings will be captured and forced to serve the ones that they once thought below them! Traachon, if you wish to save your people, you will act now!"

"Optimus, I believe you have said your piece. You are dismissed, and I would suggest you never bring this pointless topic up again. This war will not even have the chance to come to fruition, and we don't need you scaring folks into joining your personal army."

Optimus glared at Traachon, but obeyed the mech's command. He turned on his heel and stomped to the door. In honesty, he hadn't come to ask for permission, but rather for help in gaining numbers. The upper crust, as it turns out, weren't very keen on joining a militia, especially for a war that they didn't think would last very long. He had a few minibots who had joined already, all of whom were gray- or purple-opticed. A few of the science caste bots had also joined, along with a few mechs that simply wanted a chance to get away or do something heroic. Sadly, though, that wasn't enough to defeat Megatron's growing army.

A worried frown suddenly clouded the young prime's faceplates at the thought of his new foe. It was illogical how swiftly Megatron had changed, and Optimus knew that artifact had something to do with that abrupt change, though Optimus still wasn't quite sure what it had done precisely. Megatron had been perfectly fine the cycle before, raving about some femme he was attracted to and claiming her to be his sparkmate. Optimus couldn't deny being a little curious as to who the lucky—well, unlucky now—femme was that had caught his best friend's attention. He knew that they were likely the center of gossip, as Megatron had managed to pull together a large amount of femme admirers, but Optimus couldn't bring himself to tune in to the gossip comm and destroy what little privacy Megatron held from him.

Still, he was unsure how to proceed in this war. Unlike the council and their fellow upper casters, he knew that this war would draw on as long as Megatron wanted it to. The ex-gladiator was stubborn and extremely smart, two things that he was certain would make life difficult for the budding Autobot army. He would not abandon his war until he got what he wanted… which led him to his next problem: he didn't know what Megatron was after. Freedom for the lower castes? That was unlikely, seeing as Megatron knew that Optimus would be willing to help him find a peaceful way to free them. World denomination? Optimus certainly hoped this wasn't his desire… Perhaps Megatron simply found out that his sparkmate liked another mech…

The massive blue mech sighed heavily as he exited the Meeting Hall. This would be a long cycle… and a long war.

* * *

"Okay, okay, I got one. I once stabbed a mech through the spark with my blade by throwing it from seventy-five steps away!"

"Oh, my Primus, Sides. Lie. Primus, Sides. That's a lie. An easy lie."

"Frag, Sideswipe. You suck at this."

"Yeah, at least make it believable…"

"Shut up! I could've done that!"

"Doubtful. You called it, Nova. Your turn."

"Oh, goody! Okay… I once stole two of Blackout's rotary blades and threw them into the Sea of Light."

"…"

"…"

"Lie."

"Ha! Truth! I was a youngling, and I took his blades while he was in the washrack. I had just discovered the Sea of Light, and I wanted to know how far down it went. I figured that I would be able to hear the blades hitting the ground, so I went back to the sea and tossed them over just as he arrived."

"How did you get away long enough to discover the Sea of Lights? A bit away from home, ain't it?"

"The femme that sparklingsat me when Blackout was busy wasn't good at her job. She usually took me to a park near the Sea and just forgot about me. The Sea actually wasn't that far from my old housing unit, believe it or not."

"What did Blackout say?"

"Oh, Sides, that was the best part! We both watched them as they fell down—he was too big to fly without all blades—and when they disappeared under the light, we looked at each other, and he said, 'Your opiluk will buy me new ones. You tell nobot how you got those blades from me. I don't even wanna _know_ how far you went into the washracks, and I don't think your danni needs to know how scarred you may be from that encounter.'"

Sideswipe broke down in laughter, while Sunstreaker simply smirked in amusement. The twins and their injured ward had been playing "Truth and Lie" for the last couple of breems, having started when Novashine awoke from a bad dream of her intended sparkmate and refused to offline again. Sideswipe, as it turned out, was either extremely bad at the game, or was losing on purpose. Sunstreaker and Novashine, on the other hand, were playing the game with a competitive spirit that Sideswipe was sure only they could. In reality, the red mech was only playing in order to keep Novashine talking about herself. So far, he had learned that she spoke fluent Tarnian, Praxian, and had recently perfected the guttural language of Kalis. She was apparently working on Helixian and the simpler language of the servant class of Iacon, along with Crystal City's softer version of Iaconian. She was terrible with accents, and the natives of wherever she visited apparently had trouble understanding her sometimes due to her thick city-femme Iaconian accent. She had attempted to learn the guttural accent of Kaon, but had apparently been laughed at by Megatron when she tried to show him her progress back when he was still an illiterate gladiator. She confided in them of her new secret desire to have a flying frame thanks to her flight with Megatron, and she told them about how her debutante danniluk, Gemstone, once punched a femme in the face for insulting Novashine's paintjob while she was playing in the park as a youngling.

As fascinating as that was, it was the things he learned about _Sunstreaker_ that had surprised him. He had learned that his twin actually had his optics set on a femme (who went unnamed), and the golden mech had contemplated changing his color scheme to royal purple or a deep blue when he first came to Iacon, but seeing how popular the color was in Iacon made him change his mind. He had also considered killing a random mech and saying it was because he lost control of his inner beast that sometimes came out whenever somebot didn't like his paintings, just to see what everybot else would say. He decided against it, though, because Novashine would likely frown on the killing of another mech.

"Yeah, it was pretty funny. I didn't even go all the way into the washracks, so I didn't see him without plating or armor or anything. He kept his blades in the steamer on the outside of the washracks so that when he came out, the dirt would come off them easily. So I actually _technically_ didn't step a pede into the washracks," Novashine said cheekily as she shifted slightly in the straps that held her off the medical berth that the twins were lounging on. She hissed lowly in pain when the movement pulled slightly on her welds in her side.

"Nova?" Sideswipe asked anxiously as he sat up to look down at her pained expression. "Are you okay, sweetspark?"

"Yeah," she said with a grunt. "No. Ow."

"Get Ratchet," Sunstreaker ordered evenly.

"No need. I'm here," a familiar voice interjected at the chartreuse medic strolled into the medbay. Sideswipe grimaced at the mech as he slid off the berth to allow him access to the femme taking residence there. "Time for some pain medication," he stated as his pointer digit turned into a needle. Novashine was about to protest, but the needle was inserted into her primary energon line, and the contents injected into her energon system. She glared up at Ratchet.

"That was unnecessary," she mumbled irritably as her optics began to dim.

"I disagree. Good recharge, my spark," Ratchet murmured with a small, affectionate smile. Novashine gave him a loopy smile before her body went limp in the straps that held her.

"Well, there goes Truth and Lie," Sideswipe said on a sigh as he leaned against the helm of the berth.

"She needs her rest, especially now. We need to move her soon," Ratchet responded with a frown. The twins looked up at him with identical frowns, Sideswipe turning to face the medic as Sunstreaker sat up on the berth.

"Explain," was the golden mechs response. Ratchet scowled at him.

"You will not order me around in my medbay. I just saved your ward's life, and you will show respect," Ratchet snapped, but Sunstreaker's response was to roll his optics. Ratchet gave a disgusted scoff before continuing. "There was an attack on Tarn. Vos tried to blame it one Iacon, but there was a mistake of some sort. The councilmechs want all political caste femmes and younglings to go to the base outside of Praxus."

"But… the Iaconian army won't be able to protect them. They have no battle experience," Sideswipe said with a frown.

"I know, which is why I plan to transport her to the Autobot base where I will be active CMO," the ex-politician stated. There was silence for a few kliks before the two twins bust out laughing.

"You? You- they're making _you_ CMO?" Sunstreaker asked in between laughs.

"You don't even have your stripes!" Sideswipe crowed. Ratchet's optics brightened in ire, and he scowled at their laughter. With actions fueled by fury, he grabbed the nearest object, which happened to be a wrench, and threw it at the twins with as much strength as he could muster. The wrench rebounded off of Sideswipe's helm, and the laughter stopped at the red twin collapsed with a pained yelp.

"Holy fraggin' spawn of a fraggin' glitch of a—"

"Mute it, you pit-spawn! Aren't you an ex-gladiator or something? Suck it up and be a mech!" Ratchet snapped, totally ignoring the red mech's pathetic, overdramatic whimpers of pain. "Now, I have given Novashine enough sedative to keep her in recharge for the duration of the trip, and her hip wound has taken well enough to the repairs that she can walk if need be. The welding on her back is still sensitive, and the welds will break easily. The same goes for her chest plating. The wound Megatron gave her may not be close to her spark, but it is dangerously close to her sparkling chamber, which makes the wound more tender. Our goal is to get her to the base on the other side of mid-Iacon without jostling her back too much. Think you two can make that happen with my help?"

The twins looked at each other with apprehension. They did not want to remove Novashine from the clinic simply because it was the closest place that could take care of her wounds, but on that same note, they didn't want her to stay here if the insurgent Defense Force was searching for the family units of political mechs.

"Okay. You carry her; we'll keep the path clear of civilians who want in on the gossip," Sunstreaker finally stated once they finished their internal conversation.

"Yep. Piece of oilcake," Sideswipe chimed in. Ratchet nodded as he started releasing the restraints on the strap system. He was about to respond when a scream from outside interrupted him. He frowned as he looked at the door, which appeared to be blocking the full effect of the multiple screams and yells that were rising from the streets beyond his lobby. He was about to leave the medbay to question his mentor when the sound of multiple explosions filled the air. The ground shook violently under their pedes, unsettling phials and medical instruments. The three mechs latched onto the berth to steady themselves, holding Novashine's remaining straps with their free hand, keeping her safe until the attack moved on. The shuddering finally stopped when the explosions died down, followed by the sound of a Vosian Seeker's engine and turbines. The medic exchanged anxious looks with the twins.

The war had begun, and Megatron had brought the first real battle to their front door. He had brought the battle to Iacon.

* * *

**Lovely Rain Dancer:** Lol. I love the twins, too. It's bad, because I'm actually kind of rooting for them, too. It's just that I know what's going to happen later on, so I don't mind Megsy. He's just a bit insane right now. ;)

**Link's Rose:** I think everyone wants to kill Megatron right now. Quite the mean fragger, isn't he? I mean, his spark's in the right place (sorta) but… his processor isn't. Not a good trade-off, is it? :\

**Suki-Angel91494:** He can't help it. Has the Fallen in his head right now. :\ Megatronous Prime really screwed up Megatron's communication skills. He was so smooth beforehand, too *sigh* I felt so bad for Ratchet! He had the makings of a good date, and Megatron totally ruined it! Poor ratch! DX

**BeautifulNightMare95:** Lol. Megsy just needs to figure out how to express his emotions. I'm sure every guy goes through this phase in his life ;) And yeah… gossip kinda sucks, but at least Nova has the twins. :)

**Vampireyautja:** XD I'm sure Nova would've loved to be able to jump out the window. Megatron can be super… well, sexy, or super scary. I've noticed that about his persona. I think it would've been funny to watch Michael Bay play with that little tidbit of his personality. Michael Bay is, after all, quite the creeper.

**Mrs. Knockout:** Yeah, Megs is kinda confused. He loves her, but doesn't know how to act on those feelings. Sadly, that leads to misunderstandings and the like. It will get even more interesting in the coming chapters, though. *sly smile* I don't think it's possible to like one of the twins more. They come as a single package, you know. It's like saying you like blue in purple more than the red in it. It just doesn't make sense that way. ;)

**Angel897:** Lol. I simply had to make Ratchet cute and sweet in this. You'll see why in later chapters, but still! XD He's such a sweetspark!

**xXRetrobotXx:** That's a good question. We'll have to see as the story progresses… ;) And I actually have the next chapter about half-way done. I hit a pretty major plot hole, so I had to go back and re-outline. Time-consuming, but necessary. *nod nod* Next chapter should be out by this weekend, Lord willing.

**Chistarpax:** Yup, yup, yup! I used poor Megatron's ignorance to create _ANGST!_ It's fabulous, no? And did you change your picture again? It looks new…

**AndromedaAI:** Neh. I thought that there wasn't a bot named Dreadwing when I made _A Little Burst of Sunlight_. Then I found out about Dreadwing, the dumb Decepticon prankster. Interesting thing to find out. :\

Lol. Yeah, the Fallen kind of destroyed poor Megatron's chance with her. We'll see what happens with their relationship, though. I mean, she can't stay mad forever… right…?

I feel your pain, but I have made a new resolve. I'm not looking for a guy until I graduate college. Completely graduate. Guys take time and effort, and on top of that, they don't mature for quite a while. I have lost hope for the moment, but that doesn't man I'll be single forever. That's just for now. I mean, why shackle myelf down when I've got so much time? Besides, most people don't get married until their late twenties. I attract attention, which is enough. I'll hold my hope until I am old enough. :)

**Luna Uchiha666:** She's sort of chosen a side. Y'all will see her dilemma next chapter, though. Next chapter will be amazing, just so you guys know. It will be fabulous. We'll see how life works out for them. ;)

**Golden Eagle 603:** Lol. It's an AU, sorta. But Megs still has to be the 'Con leader. Can't avoid that. It'll get more interesting, though, and more twisted in the coming chapters. And… don't be so sure. I'll tell you something about how I work… I'll let you think one thing so that I can throw you for a loop later on. *evil smile* Assume nothing, honey.

**Iceshadow911247:** Then we shall boycott "Fifty Shades" and put in its place TF fanfics! We got this! I shall! It will be fabulous! This is movie 'verse. It would work for a while in Prime 'verse, but the things that happen later on would not match up with the canon like I want them to.

Darling. Honestly, darling. Jazz is like—

Jazz: I'm 'er boytoy.

Jazz is that annoying voice in the back of your mind that screams, "I have low self-esteem, so put me in your story with awesome lines, because I'm not awesome in real life, and I act like a femme!"

Jazz: I hate you.

Gotta love the Jazzman. XD

Yeah. Traachon isn't a good opiluk. She's just there to be seen. But that's okay. She has her twins and ratchet. :) They make her happy.

I killed Rip-Rage… Does that count?

**Sunstreaker's Squishy:** Yeah. I couldn't think of anything different, and besides, I wanted to kinda stick to the canon. You'll see that a lot in this fic. I'm trying to stay close to the facts, despite the writer's liberties I have taken. Yeah, the Fallen said exactly what Megatron needed to hear to take action. In my 'verse, he kind of hypnotized him, too. Sorta switched his thoughts around. And I would never let my OC stand by and get raped. Not my style. And my OCs aren't damsels-in-distress. My eye twitches when I read about femme like that. :|

**Agent Or4ng3:** Now, now. Don't judge. Would you want to hook up with a person with claws for hands and sharp, serrated dentas? He didn't know what else to do. ;) but seriously, that'll probably come back to bite him in the aft. You just don't piss of the main OC. Especially when she's your sparkmate. *sigh* silly Megatron. Silly, naïve Megatron.

Yeah. The twins are gonna be beside themselves for a while. Especially with those feelings rising up. Can't wait to write a twins/Nova scene. X3

**Thebookfan09:** Lol. Megsy ain't deranged! He's perfectly normal! He's even gotten to the point where he can tell Nova how he feels about her! Ain't that sweet?! ^-^ And of course I'm cruel to Nova. Where else would I find all this angst? :D

No problem. I didn't want to have to clean off Dreadwing's ped if he stepped on you. *ewww* And, my dearest sub-Jazz, I would be lost in a ditch without your mad skills! I would probably still be missing my left shoe, as well! You are good at your job *pats head*

Lol. Novashine's leaving a trail of broken sparks behind her! Ha! Don't worry. I'll take care of the Hatchet. Promise.

Yeah. I can never keep Jazz out of a story. The mech lives in my brain, I swear. I don't know how he does it, either.

Jazz: It's mah mad skillz.

There'll be a lot more cameos, though. It shall be fabulous! See, see?! Megatron was a smooth mech before the Fallen was all, "I SHALL EAT YO BRAINS AND MAKE YOUS MY SERVANT OF _DARKNESS!"_

Well, hope you loved it. I shall PM you tomorrow, promise! I must head to bed now! Ciao!

**Trapezoidal:** Lol. Well, that's an interesting reason to like the psychotic Megatron. Definitely a new one ;) I was so close to making Wheeljack appear and say, "LET THE EXCAVATION FOR SCIENCE BEGIN!" So close. Then I decided not to. XD

**HanamiKaze:** I'm the same way. I'd probably be possessive if someone was flirting with my sparkmate, too, though. I try. Keeping the canon characters in character is very important to me. I know from experience that the second a character acts OOC, whether the character is canon or not, the story loses the readers interest.

**Sweettea1:** I just ordered mine. Hard cover, and due to come in in a month or so. It shall be fabulous! I love that torn feeling. That's what I was going for. I want y'all to feel that angst. That is me being a terrible person and practicing my writing abilities on y'all. After all, a good writer can control her reader's emotions ;)

**Dracomancer6491:** Very glad you liked it, my dear! The uprising will be met with angst and confusion, along with many other fun emotions. What else can be expected? I cannot wait to write the next couple of chapters. The emotional rollercoaster begins again! :D

**Cairistona:** Hi hi! Yes, Winter-mester sucked. It didn't help that I was sick the whole time. My body never had time to recuperate, so I just kept getting worse and worse. Not a good thing. But I'm all better now and life is moving on. :)

I think Jazz would make a fabulous space heater. Just saying ;) I has fun playing with my reader's emotions. The rollercoaster in such a fabulous ride. *evil smile*

Hey, how's life? Still super busy? Still without a steady internet source?

**Leonixon: **Why? Because I like controlling emotions. I swear I'm getting a complex over this. XD Though, who wouldn't? And yes, I have to have my Jazzman in there. Gotta love 'im!

I think everyone's rooting for the twins. Strange. XD

* * *

Very nice, right? I can see that your love for Traachon grows as you read about him. *snicker* As I said before, he guy's an idiot. then we have the battle coming up... And we see just how deep Sideswipe is in with his relationship with Novashine... Rather abrupt at the end, but I did that for a reason, which you will see next chapter. *evil smile* Let the emotional rollarcoaster start the next round!

Review, folks!


	7. Chapter 7

1) Let's face it. You guys are gonna hate me by the end of this chapter =_=

**Warning: This chapter contains violence and *sorta* graphic depictions of death. It's war, guys. It ain't pretty.**

When reading this... just remember that I'm not that cruel... please... This chapter is going to take you down a very emotional spiral. I actually had to stop every so often because it was depressing to write. Once again, though, it's a war scene. :(

2...or 3?) I have started the Sunny/Nova/Sides and Ratch/Nova oneshots. They will be out with the chapter thee correspond with, so they won't be out for a few more chapters.

3 or 4) Once again, remember that I don't kill of main characters.

* * *

Chapter 7

5,310 words

* * *

"Run!"

It was this word, accented by screams of pain and terror, that rang out repeatedly over the crowd by multiple different mechs and femmes as the scrambled through the streets in a vain attempt to protect themselves from the attacking seekers. Ratchet had only glanced at the twins once before leaping into the flow of people, his grip on Novashine tight and firm as he worked his way through the masses, Sunstreaker and Sideswipe close behind him. Another trine rocketed over their helms, and to their right, a building collapsed in on itself after being hit by a barrage of gunfire from the Vosian flyers.

"We have to find cover!" Sunstreaker yelled out.

"We have to get out of this crowd. We're in one huge target!" Sideswipe added as he dodged a mech who had been shoved his way.

"To the left! We'll take the underground route!" Ratchet ordered over the din. He didn't wait for the twins to reply. He shoved through the crowd effortlessly and dashed down the barely crowded alleyway that opened to their left.

"Decepticons, spare none! Show these Iaconian blue-sights just what desperate mechs look like! Show them your pain! Take what should be rightfully yours!"

Megatron's strong voice was easily heard through the public announcement system, and the next second, the screams grew in number and intensity as seekers, and grounders of varying lower castes flooded the streets and started slaughtering all upper caste bots they could. Ratchet forced himself to block out the sounds, pointedly ignoring the fact that life was being stolen from the bots on the street he had just left. He knew he should feel guilty, that he should be doing something, but on that same note, he knew that there was nothing to be done. He could not take on an army of military and servant caste mechs, and there was no doubt that he would be unable to save any of the mechs and femmes that were being killed. Instead, he needed to focus on saving himself and the femme in his arms. Sunstreaker and Sideswipe would take care of themselves. As military builds, they would blend in with the murderers, as morbid as that thought was. He needed to focus his energies on Novashine.

"In here!" he yelled as they neared the end of the alleyway. Hidden behind an outdoors solvent mixer* was a small door, and Ratchet wasted no time in rushing through it. Sideswipe and Sunstreaker were quick to follow, along with five or six bots that had seen the medic and followed him. Sunstreaker quickly closed the door, once the last bot had come through, though. They could not risk getting discovered. The screams and cries of pain were dulled down when the door closed, and Ratchet was immediately moving forward through a short tunnel made of metal. The tunnel appeared to be made for minibots, and as such, the bots had to move in uncomfortable crouches to keep from scraping their helms against the ceiling.

"Where are we going?" a femling near the back of the line asked, but she was swiftly shushed by her two creators.

"This tunnel will lead us to the Old Metro," Ratchet informed them gruffly.

"But… but that Met was shut down because of safety violations!" a mech protested.

"If you wanna travel the streets, be my guest!" Ratchet snapped, effectively silencing the elite caste mech. There were a few beats of silence as they continued to move, taking turns when necessary. It was suffocating, in a way… the silence. Dark thoughts, fears, and worry permeated the sparks of each bot, and the negative emotions seemed to bounce around the metal walls, growing in intensity every time they collided.

"Will it be safe for Arcee?" the femme at the back of the group whispered suddenly, referring to the pink femling that clung to her leg. The whisper, though quiet, sounded like a yell in the silence, and every bot winced at the sound before Ratchet answered.

"It is far safer than walking exposed in the streets right now," he said gravely.

"Primus, all those innocent bots!" another, older femme suddenly wailed. "All those mechs, femmes, and younglings! All slaughtered like non-sentient animals!"

"Hush, femme! We are stressed enough without your blathering!" a yellow-opticed mech snapped impatiently, though his faceplates held a sick, horrified expression that told Ratchet that he did not want to remember or think about the deaths he had likely witnessed.

"They killed them! I saw one cut off a trademech's helm!" she continued hysterically. Ratchet paused in his movements to look behind him. The elder femme was beginning to vent heavily, and the other five strangers were beginning to pick up on her panic. No. This would not work. He could not have this femme causing all these bots to fall into hysteria. Without hesitation, Ratchet dumped Novashine into Sideswipe's arms, moved soundlessly to the femme's side, and jabbed a needle into the main energon line on her right arm. She yelped in surprise, then looked up at Ratchet in shock.

"What…?" That was all she got out before the strong sedative kicked in, and she fainted dead away. Ratchet deftly caught her and lifted her into his arms. He took two steps forward, dumped her into the arms of the politician caste mech that had yelled at her only moments before, and returned to his spot at the head of the pack after reclaiming his femme from the red twin's grasp.

"She gets hurt, it's on your helm," Ratchet warned the yellow-opticed mech cryptically before moving forward again. With that said, the group continued their trek forward, none willing to argue with the stressed medibot. Silence reigned again, and it pressed down on the high caste bots as they trodded through the short halls. They could no longer hear the screams, had not been able to hear them for a while, but still, the cries seemed to echo in their processors. They had been murdered, brutally killed for no reason. The grown femme creator shuddered before returning to her natural pace. It was a nightmare; a nightmare that none had expected or thought possible. Sure, they had all heard of the fights between Vos and Tarn, but for the seekers and lower castes to bring their fight to Iacon? It made no sense. And their Lord Protector was _leading _them, egging them on as they mercilessly massacred innocent bots.

"We will turn right up here, and this hallway will open up to the Met," Ratchet stated, causing the upper caste bots to flinch at the sudden noise. Though it was a horrifying sight for the upper caste bots to see that carnage, Sunstreaker and Sideswipe were less traumatized. They had seen that kind of gore and then some during their lives in the pits. Slag, they had _caused_ some of that gore and had done so with pride. They were disturbed by the fact that those being killed were innocents, but they knew that they would last only a few breems when fighting against that many mechs. If they had fought back, not only would they have risked their own lives, but they would've thrown Ratchet and Novashine to the proverbial cyberwolves. Besides, there was no point in fighting a battle you could not win. Their trainer had told given the advice once, and they still held it to spark: "the only thing worse than a violent mech is a violent mech that has nothing left to lose." Those mechs up top had proven quite definitely that they had nothing left to lose.

"Here," Ratchet announced as he stepped into the small Metro station, straightening as he did. Sideswipe grimaced as he looked around. Rust was predominant in the short station, and the red gladiator found that his helm almost touched the ceiling. The walls appeared to be caving in, something that gave the mech no reassurance. The only Metro car was in a horrible condition. The hover technology had long since rusted over, and the car sat pitifully on the low-tech rails below it, rails that had not been used for millennia, but were never removed because it would put too much of a delay on the Metro's movements. Like the station it sat in, the walls were covered with rust and falling apart.

"Do you honestly expect us to get that thing working again?" the politician asked with a frown. Ratchet glanced back at him before he started making his way to the end of the elevated platform.

"Not hardly. These rail systems haven't been used in a long time, but I know that they still keep rail cars prepped just in case one of the Met cars breaks down," the medic responded as he carefully made his way down a set of service stairs to the rail lines on the ground below. Sideswipe and Sunstreaker exchanged confused glances before following the chartreuse mech.

"Hey, Ratch, how's Nova?" Sideswipe asked abruptly as he jogged to the medic's side. Ratchet stopped in his steps, waiting patiently for the higher class bots to make their way down the stairs.

"Right now, she's fine. The welds on her back are trying to open, but they are holding for the moment. As long as we keep going and keep these new rebels away from her, she should recharge through this whole trip."

"How long will it take to get to the base?" Sunstreaker questioned brusquely as he strode up to the medic's other side.

"I cannot say. Slag, I'm not even sure if this rail car will still be functioning."

"Can't you fix it?" the blue-opticed elitist questioned with a scowl.

"I'm a medic, not an engineer," Ratchet shot back irately.

"What will we do, then, if the car is broken?" the femme asked as she moved forward, little Arcee still attached to her leg. Ratchet glanced over at the teal femme and gave a deep, venting sigh.

"I suppose we will walk there. It will take a great deal longer, but we cannot risk making too much noise," Ratchet said with a frown, glancing down the huge, long tunnel that stretched out before them. He glanced back at the politician as he finally made his way over to the rest of the crowd, and without hesitation or another word, he started down the tunnel.

"Hey, hey! You don't think those bots will find us, do you?" the teal femme asked as she jogged forward to walk beside Ratchet, lifting little Arcee into her arms as she moved. The femlet immediately wrapped her arms around the elder femme's neck, tucking her small face into the femme's shoulder. Ratchet made an uncertain sound.

"I doubt it. The enemies—I think Megatron called them Decepticons—don't know we left the streets. For all they know, every upper caste bot was killed. So, unless somebot in this group has a connection of some kind with one of those brutes, we should be under their radar, so you and your creation should be safe," Ratchet assured her with a small smile. The femme blinked in surprise, then grinned back.

"My name is Moonracer, and Arcee is my sister, not my creation. My mech creator and I were taking her to the park when the rebels attacked. What about you?" Ratchet sent her a sideways glance.

"I was transporting this femme to the Autobot base for further protection. Megatron injured her."

"I see… Wait! Isn't that Novashine?" Moonracer moved closer to examine the offline femme's facial features closer. Moonracer, in all honesty, had never really paid any attention to the gossip, and being as she had lived in Praxus for the last couple of orns, she had not been to any of Gemstone's upscale parties. Of course, news travels, so Moonracer was aware of the scandalous plights of Traachon's femme creation, but she had gotten to the point where she did not really recognize the faces of Iaconian upper crust at first glance. "Primus. Megatron did a number on her, didn't he? Does this have something to do with her rumored trips to Kaon?"

"They weren't rumors," Sunstreaker snapped from his position at Ratchet's right flank, startling the femme with his sudden statement. "She came to see us, me n' Sideswipe."

"Oh…" the femme responded awkwardly, quite intimidated by the red-opticed mechs that walked behind her. "So… why did Megatron attack her, then?"

"We think he wanted Traachon's creation for himself," Sideswipe interjected, the memory of walking in while Megatron attempted to force himself on his charge flitting through his processor fleetingly.

"So do you think he'll keep coming after her?" Moonracer quizzed.

"I hope not—frag!" Ratchet cut himself off with a curse when he laid optics on the rail car. It had been vandalized. The wheels were missing, the low-tech engine had been ripped apart, and the walls, like the Metro car, were rusted. Pessimism and disappointment settled over the small group of Iaconians like an acid cloud.

"Guess we're walking from here…" Moonracer's mech creator stated grimly.

"Indeed," Ratchet responded with a deep frown. There were a few beats of silence as they all stared despondently at the rail car. Perhaps this was an omen of sorts, perhaps it meant that they were doomed to fail, doomed to die. It was a dismal thought, the idea that they would be killed by their fellow Cybertronians. Who would have thought that a cycle that had started out so wonderfully could turn out so bad?

"Well, we might as well get started. We have a long walk ahead of us," Ratchet informed the group. Uneasy glances were passed around the group before they all looked back at Ratchet. The medic gave a single nod before turning and moving back the way they had come. There was silence as they bots all followed him, each looking downtrodden and hopeless. Nothing seemed to be going right in this. The deaths, the Met car, the rail car, and now, they had to walk all the way to Autobot HQ. Where was the justice in this? Where were the Councilmechs and the Senate with their Iaconian army? Where were Optimus Prime and his new Autobots?

* * *

To say that the walk was long and laborious would be like saying that a few bots had heard of Optimus Prime. The Metro was made to fit to the internals of Cybertron perfectly, meaning that there were extreme hills and seemingly random turns and tunnels that broke away from the main rail line to head to other city-states. The trip, when made by the most fit and young mechs, took about a quarter joor. The trip, when taken by two gladiators and five upper caste bots, two of whom were laden with unconscious femmes and one with a youngling, took at least a half joor. Sunstreaker and Sideswipe scouted, carefully checking a few meters in front and behind them for followers. The elite mech and the politician had struck up a whispered conversation about stocks a while back, and Moonracer and her small family consisting of her, her sister, and her mech creator had started whispering about Chromia, who was apparently related to them. Ratchet remained silent, brooding about the deaths as he moved forward on soundless pedes, taking scans of his patient every breem or so. Luckily, she appeared to be perfectly fine for the moment, sedatives and painkillers still working brilliantly.

Despite the fact that they had heard no negative noises or seen anything for the last few breems, worry and a sense of foreboding still hung over the small group like a shroud. Every few moments, Moonracer would cuddle Arcee closer and shudder, and their creator would respond by wrapping his arm tighter around her shoulders. The two other upper caste mechs would randomly cast furtive glances around, suspiciously looking for any rebel mechs that could be hiding.

"I got nothing in back, Ratch," Sideswipe reported as he skated from his short scouting jaunt. He had been sent to double back where they had come from, watching for followers.

"Same up front, Ratchet," Sunstreaker added as he slowed from a dead sprint as he approached the group.

"I hate this," Moonracer announced in a shaky voice. "I feel like I'm just waiting, like they're gonna appear any klik now, and we—"

A loud explosion sounded just above them, eliciting a high shriek from the femme that had apparently jinxed them. Sideswipe moved quickly, tackling the elite mech out of the way of some falling rubble as the roof caved in. Dust and smoke filled the tunnel, and Ratchet looked around blindly for the gladiator bodyguards as he turned to sprint away from the pandemonium. He had to protect his patient!

"I believe that is mine," Megatron voice purred. Ratchet turned just in time to get a fist to the faceplates. He staggered backwards, letting out a horrified cry when Novashine was wrenched from his arms. "My sincerest gratitude," Megatron added, and a second later, he was gone, thrusters taking him through the huge hole he had created in the tunnel ceiling.

"Nova!" Ratchet cried as he watched the ex-protectorate fly away with his intended. A sense of helplessness and uselessness filled him to his core. He couldn't even protect a single patient. What kind of medic _was_ he?

"Sunny! That fragger took Nova!" Sideswipe yelled.

"Let's slag him!" Sunstreaker yelled back. Ratchet squinted through the dust and was shocked to see a jetpack transform from Sideswipe's back plating. The red gladiator wrapped his arms around his twin and without hesitation, jetted into the sky. Ratchet silently wished them luck before turning his attention to the bots stuck with him. He was a medic, and he would keep a steady helm in the sight of catastrophe. The twins would get Novashine back, and he would be ready for her once she arrived. He was willing to bet Megatron would stop chasing her once she was bonded, and Ratchet planned on creating that bond the second she was cleared from the medbay. It was only a matter of time.

* * *

Sideswipe grunted irritably as he flew around buildings in an attempt to catch up with the rebel leader. If there was one thing he could say about Megatron, it was that the mech was good at everything he did, flying included. It wasn't that Sideswipe wasn't good at flying, but his jetpack wasn't nearly as maneuverable as Megatron's wings were. So needless to say, Sideswipe wasn't quite sure how he caught up with the hulking mech, and he couldn't really remember dumping Sunstreaker on top of him. However, the reaction, due to its violence was easy to recall.

"You fraggin' meddling pieces of _scrap!"_ Megatron roared as he spun in the air, trying to shake off the yellow gladiator who had attached himself to the larger mech's wings. He was so close—_so close_—to achieving his first real major success. Well, perhaps it would be classified as his second major success, or even his third. Yes, his third, he supposed. Putting together his army was the first, and the Battle of Iacon was easily the second. Capturing his future mate would be his third success, a success that these two mechs were delaying. It irked him, in all honesty, that these two mechs were fighting so hard against him. Had he not helped train them? Had he not loaned them credits when they had lost the gladiator battle in Kalis? _Still,_ they fought him to keep what they likely deemed as theirs away from him.

So unwise.

"Release her, you fraggin lunatic!" Sideswipe ordered as he fought to keep up with the gray mech. Megatron twisted away, shifting his flight pattern as he made an abrupt left in an attempt to lose the red mech.

"You cannot have that which is mine!" Megatron roared as he twisted in the air, his grip on Novashine tight as he fought to dislodge the mech on his back.

"She is not yours!" Sunstreaker snapped as he yanked Megatron's left wing backwards. The mech gave a pained shout as he spun into a building to his left. He swiftly attempted to redirect himself, but the building clipped the tip off his wing, making his flight pattern unstable.

"You will kill us all with your foolishness! Admit defeat and relinquish my femme without argument!" the warlord ordered furiously.

"You cannot have her!" Sunstreaker snapped, vaguely noting that his brother had fallen behind.

"You cannot keep her from me!"

"FIRE!"

The shout was easily heard by the two red-opticed mechs, as was the gunfire that followed it. Sunstreaker glanced down to see the Iaconian army scattered amongst the corpses below them. The aim of the small militia left much to be desired, to the fortune of the two mechs in the air. However, quite a few of the wild shots still hit the target. Megatron roared in pain as a long-range plasma round shot through his wing, and a second later, his left wing collided with another building, sending him into a downward spiral. Somewhere in the violent spin, he lost his grip on the femme he held, but that concern quickly vanished with his thought processes.

The sound of three bots colliding violently with the ground filled the air, and it seemed as if the world was completely silent after the fact. Sunstreaker was been dislodged sometime during the spin and had landed painfully on a cart that had once been used to show the wares of a tradesmech of some sort. Silent groans of pain could be heard from his position, along with the sounds of weakly shifting metal as he attempted without success to rise from his resting place. He turned his helm slowly, searching through dim optics for the other two bots he had flown with.

Megatron was the first bot he saw. The titanic mech appeared to have collided straight on with the ground, rolling and bouncing as he landed, as evidenced by the dented metal ground and stripped armor. He would feel more pain than Sunstreaker, the golden mech noted with a feeble sort of morbid glee. Unlike Sunstreaker, the massive mech appeared to be completely offline, something that Sunstreaker was happy about. He knew that a fight with Megatron, while they were in these conditions, would likely end in death, and he wasn't completely sure it would be Megatron that died.

His optics roamed again… but he saw no sign of Novashine.

"No-_va_shhhhhhh~~~" Sunstreaker broke off with a wince, hating the popping clicks and static that took over his voice. Primus, his vocal processor was shorted. Well, _that_ had never happened before. A loopy grin rose to his face. He had yet _another_ wound that Sideswipe had never had before. This was fabulous,though Sunstreaker wasn't quite sure why... Deciding that it would be wise to find his errant femme—because she _was _errant… where was she again? Sunstreaker snorted as he forced himself to his pedes… oh, his _pede_. Well… that was strange. He was pretty sure he started out that flight with two legs… Well… that made things difficult…

"Noooooooooooooo-_vaaaa_-" he tried again, but his vocal processor gave off a series of clicks in between each syllable. How irritating!

"Sunny!" The golden mech jolted, which caused him to sway on his single leg. Red arms caught him before he could fall, and Sunstreaker gave his brother a grateful grin.

"Si-si-si-si-sideshhhhhhh~~~SHW_ipe_-" Sunstreaker greeted happily, pointedly ignoring those infernal clicks and static bursts.

"We have to get you a medic," Sideswipe said seriously as he hauled his brother into his arms, ignoring the mech's loopy giggles at the movement. The red twin glanced over at Megatron and met the stare of a tall purple mech whose face was completely covered by a facemask and a crimson visor. They stared at each other for a single klik, both carrying their own load of injured mech. The Decepticon finally gave a single nod, as if to say, "I will allow you to live this time. Flee while I allow you to." Sideswipe scowled as the mech hefted Megatron a little higher in his arms before jetting into the sky. Sideswipe didn't wait to see where he went. Instead, he sprinted down the street towards the place where he had last seen mechs with blue optics.

"Nnn_ooooooo_va," Sunstreaker called.

"I couldn't find her. I have the Autobots looking for her. Oh! Hey, you! Medic!" Sideswipe yelled when he caught sight of one of the white and red mechs. Blue optics flitted over to him, and a scowl lit the face of the blue-opticed mech.

"What the slag happened?!" the medic demanded as he hurried to the red mech's side.

"Megatron," was the bodyguard's response as he set his brother down. The medic knelt beside him, not even hesitating before he went to work on the golden mech's leg, clamping energon lines and offlining shorted pain receptors.

"We have an injured mech on Center Street. Patient has multiple lacerations, a missing arm, a missing leg, and a deep helm injury. Requesting assistance." Sunstreaker frowned at the mech's words. He was missing an arm too? He didn't remember losing his arm… Would they mind if he went looking for it?

"Noohhhhhshhhhhh-No-ho-vashhhhhnnnnn," he called weakly. "Nov… love..."

And with that, he dropped offline, his frame unable to run on such a low amount of energon. Beside him, his brother let out a pained and horrified cry as he clutched at his spark. By the time the extra medics arrived, both twins were in emergency stasis-lock, one from energon-loss and the other for no reason unknown. They didn't think on it, though, only continued to do their job while they waited for emergency medical transport back to the Autobot base.

In the midst of the carnage and the loss, nobot remembered what the golden mech was talking about.

Nobot knew about the missing femme, Novashine.

* * *

There was silence around him. Complete and utter silence, and he hated it. Sure, he wasn't the type of mech that always had to have music playing, but he still hated the silence that covered the dead city. He shuddered at that thought. No, Iacon was _not_ dead. A large portion of the populous was…

He was not making this any better, he thought as he moved through the streets, streets that appeared to be right out of a horror holo. He couldn't remember ever seeing so many dead things, especially bots. Slag, bots dying was almost unheard of… Sure, extensive rust and viruses took the lives of a lot of the lower caste bots, but this… this was horrifying, unnatural. He shuddered again as he carefully stepped over a puddle of energon. Even as a soldier in the Iaconian army, he had never thought to see something like this.

"Help…"

The weak word cut through him like an energized blade, yanking him from his thoughts as he rushed forward, looking around in an attempt to find the owner of the voice. Unfortunately, there were hundreds of bodies dotting the ground, and all of them looked the same: gray and lifeless.

"Where are you?" he called out.

"…Help…" was the frail reply. The mech turned to his right and froze when he saw her. She was sprawled out on her front on the ground, position holding the appearance of one who had rebounded off the metal wall behind her before landing solidly on the metal ground. Her right arm was completely broken, the bottom half of her forearm attached to the rest of her arm by a few stubborn cables, and her left arm was cracked to the strut. Her back released a steady stream of energon from three puncture wounds that appeared to be rather deep, and there were two more identical wounds that seemed to be welded shut, though the weld was strained to the point of having to be replaced anyways. Energon streamed from a reopened gash on the right side of her waist, easily matching the flow from those on her back. Strangely enough, it seemed like her legs were the least damaged, the only injury being her right knee, which looked slightly misplaced.

"Primus," the mech breathed as he approached her. Cracked blue optics looked up at him with fear, pain, and despair.

"…Help…" she whimpered, revealing her partially flattened faceplates as she turned her helm to look at him.

**::Commander, I have a severely injured femme on the Breezeway:: -Glitch**

**::Confirmed. Sending medical team and calling in medical evac:: -General Traachon, High Councilor**

**::Acknowledged. Glitch out:: -Glitch**

The red-armored mech sighed as he slowly seated himself beside the weakly crying femme. He wondered idly how many of those tears were from the horror of the murders she must have witnessed and how many were from the pain she must be suffering.

"It's okay. Everything will be okay," he promised her with a gentle smile, though he was unsure if she could see it through her damaged optics.

"Hurts…" she whined pitifully. He gave her a sympathetic frown.

"I know. You must fight through it."

"But it hurts…"

"I know. Just stay awake. Keep talking to me. How about you tell me about yourself?"

"Nova…"

"Nova? Oh! Your _name_ is Nova. I'm Glitch." This gained a small snort of laughter from her, which was followed up by a pained moan and a high-pitched whimper. "Yeah, that's what everybot says. My creators had a sense of humor. I have a brother named Short-Circuit and a sister named Fritz."

"No siblings... Me…"

"Well, who are your creators?"

"Hurts…" she mumbled, obviously not hearing his question. He frowned as he gazed down at her dimming optics.

"No, no. Stay awake. Tell me about your family."

"Sideswipe… Sunny?" She vented heavily, optics glazing over slightly as she repeated those two names again. "Sunny? Sides… Meg… Liar…"

"Who's Sunny and Sides?" Glitch asked, desperate to keep her focus and at least semi-lucid. That question seemed to pull her slightly from her daze.

"My twins… mine… protect…"

"You protect them?"

"No… protect…"

"They protect you."

"Uh-huh… want… Sunny… Sides… Meg lied… killer…"

"Stand back, soldier!" The shout was accompanied by the heavy footfalls of two medics as they rushed towards them. Glitch obediently stood and stepped away.

"Glitch stay…" One of the medics snorted at this statement, but the humor was shoved aside as they started placing field patches over wounds.

"I detect no internal damage," one of the medics claimed. "Patch her up and send her to the Sectors."

"Wait, wait! The Sectors?" Glitch repeated, looking and sounding confused.

"Yeah. We're sending all surviving femmes, sparklings, and younglings to the Youth Sectors unless they want to participate in the upcoming battles," the second medic clarified. "War is no place for creatures as delicate as these. The medics will repair her once she is there. We don't have time here. There are far too many survivors that need medical aid."

Glitch closed his mouth and watched in silence as they medics did their job, pointedly ignoring Nova when she mumbled about Sideswipe, Sunny, and Meg. She was delusional with pain, and it was unlikely that any mechs actually went by those names. Twins were rare, if not non-existent. She was in extreme pain, and her processor likely created them as a coping device. After all, pain was easier to manage if you were under the belief that two mechs were coming to save you from it. Glitch watched with hooded optics as the medical evac, a short-distance ship, landed nearby, and he studied the now unconscious femme as they loaded her carefully into the craft. The medics exited the craft as swiftly as they entered it, and a second later, the ship flew away.

* * *

**Link's Rose:** No worries! Sunny hurt him for you! :D Yeah. Me, Sarah, and Lynn made that up one day. It was snowing outside, we had been stuck with each other for a good twelve hours and had completely exhausted every other resource in the house… and thus, many, _many_ games were born…

**Lovely Rain Dancer: **_I know right?!_ I actually loved my old Megatron, then I made him get brainwashed, and I was like, "Megatron, my love, I have allowed you to be ruined. *shame*"

And Traachon isn't where nova got her smarts. That was actually Gemstone's doing. You'll see her more next chapter. She's actually a cool femme. She just has to uphold her image in front of the masses. ;)

**Thebookfan09: **I'm kinda good. Still dealing with crap and stuff with work, but I'm holding up. :) thanks for asking, Jazz-man. Oh! Dylan called me. He broke up with the witch! :D I told him he can't be Jazz anymore. He told me to ask if you would mind being Blaster so he could be Jazz again. He doesn't wanna be Blaster. What do you think? Is he worthy of the position? 0.0

Lol. If I dropped the angst, then the story would just be fluff, and where's the fun in that? :D After all, if it's just fluff, it'll only be two more chapters long… Your pick. :L

0.0 Wow… I was thinking that he'd be from somewhere a bit more… _out there_, ya know… Then again… Maybe it makes sense. The Fallen was spawned in the state that contains Snookie…

Awwwww! You defended my medic OC! Here! Haves cookies! I think this is the only story that I've portrayed him like that. Well… I made him a doormat in TaCO, too, didn't I? *sigh* Then again, that's why I love him. He can be assertive of submissive… I really need to write him his own one-shot. Poor mech. :\

I know. I feel so bad for the twins, especially after this chapter. Poor Sunstreaker. :( I'm so mean to all my characters! DX

Because Traachon is a fragging pit-spawn. Dude, he doesn't even care about his daughter! And how he treated Prime? Burns me up inside! Then again, I kinda wrote him as a hateable character… so I hate him anyways…

Hmmmm… I haves no cake… Here! Haves more cookies! ^o^

**Agent Or4ng3: ** Lol! I know. Poor femme! Poor mechs! I torture them too much. 'Specially in this chapter. D: They need hugs. :( Especially now that their femme has just disappeared…

**Leonixon: ***evil smile* This chapter was an emotional spiral! It was so hard to write, though!

**HanamiKaze: ** You know,I've actually read a fic like that? The writer used Mikaela, and made her OOC to the point that it was a different person with Mikaela's name and paired her with Bumblebee. I mean, it was a good fic until it got to the point that there was a lemon every other chapter… but still. It wasn't as good as it could have been had the writer stuck to the canon Mikaela. :\

**Golden Eagle 603: **Well… I hope this one drew you in. Kinda crazy and really violent. :\

**Sunstreaker's Squishy:** Well, he doesn't really know yet. You'll see his reaction later when the others find out about her disappearance. As for Kalis, it actually _is_ a Cybertronian city-state. It's not real popular because it's pretty much destroyed at the beginning of the war on Earth during G1. Just after Optimus and the Autobots woke up on Earth, Emirate Xaaron made his last stand with his small group of Autobots at Kalis. They were all killed. A rouge Autobot scientist named Flame later reanimated those bodies to be his undead bodyguards, but he and the undead were deafeated by the Wreckers. It is a pretty poor city-state, though. The only things there that are really of any use are the Kalistian Energon refineries.

I hated Spanish class. Because of our location in Texas, we had to take three years of Spanish class. Hated it. I love sign language, though. I'm still learning it. Then, I wanna move on to Japanese. :D

Oh! Lol. "Sparkancy" is a play off the word "pregnancy." I was feeling especially unimaginative as I wrote it… ^^;; So yeah… Sparkancy. What you're thinking of is what I call "spark loss." Or something to that effect.

**Angel897: **Eh heh. It'll be a while before Megsy is sane again. Remember, he's under the Fallen's control as long as the Fallen lives. :\

**xXRetrobotXx: **Of course he had to attack soon! Ratchet was planning on bonding with his sparkmate! Megatron had to attack so that she would bond with him first! *Insane Bad Guy Logic* ;)

**Vampireyautja: **I love irony. Oh, I love it. That's one of the best things about being a writer, is that you know what's gonna happen next. I use irony a lot in my sparklingsitting one. XD Soooo… are ya still flipping out?

**Chistarpax: **Lol. Just every now and again? I've been thinking about changing mine… Decisions decisions…

Aw. :( Don't judge poor Megsy like that. He has a creepy old evil Prime messing with his head! His evil is justified! DX

Yup! Super excited! I'm wanting a niece. I _really_ want a niecd. X3

**Mrs. Knockout: ***flips hair* Well, if you insist on showering me with praises, who am I to stop you? ;) I shall channel Starscream for you. *ahem* I AM THE LEADER OF FANFICTION! ALL THOSE WHO DISAGREE SHALL DIE! BOW BEFORE YOUR RIGHTFUL LEADER!

Whoa! Did that come across as too strong? Primus, he always scares people when he talks like that. We're still working on that inside voice ;) JK

In all honesty, though, thank you for the compliments. It keeps me going and keeps my self-confidence and reasons for writing alive.

I hate Traachon too! He's actually like Rip-Rage to me. I hate him, but he's technically a good guy that keeps making stupid mistakes. A rude, mean good guy that keeps making stupid mistakes…

! And here I am, fueling an addiction! … Well, who am I to turn down a guilty pleasure? ;) Hope you enjoyed it, sugar! :D

**Sweettea1: **Yeah… Traachon's a rude slagger. He'll get his, though. Rest assured. I will not let him escape his fate. And yeah, I found it irnic that Ratchet's wrench-throwing started with the twins. XD And next chapter, he gets introduced to the Autobot army… Oh, the joy that chapters will bring.

**Iceshadow911247: **Weeeeelllll… I was gonna kill Chem… I was like thiiiiiiis close. He was actually gonna die at the end, killed by Shockwave, but I decided that I loved him too much, and he was too much of a fan favorite. I probably would have been hunted down had I killed him.

Can you blame him?! Poor mech slaves away for the perfect shine, the perfect shade and overcoat! And all of it is destroyed in one fail swoop! DX It is _very traumatizing!_ D'X

Yep. Ironic that they started his nasty habits. Wonder when he starts throwing temper tantrums XD

**Luna Uchiha666: **Weeelll… As you can see, the healing process is probably gonna take a while… eh heh heh.

**AndromedaAI: **Well… I don't think she's gonna be quick to forgive him… He's kinda crazy in the head right now, though… so he may not give her much of a choice. 0.o

Oh, I love Dreadwing! I hated the second-to-last episode in the last season! I almost died! DX

…*snort* Totally thought you put "leg asp" instead of "le gasp" *snort*

* * *

*A solvent mixer is kinda like a water heater. It makes sure the solvent is properly mixed and heated so that a bot doesn't destroy his/her paint job every time he/she washes.

No, Sunny and Sides didn't die. I couldn't kill them. Glitch didn't recognize her because he is only a military caste mech, and as such is not allowed to listen to the gossip public comms. Let's see... What else should I clarify...?

Oh! Next chapter will be happy. Well, not for the twins, but for Nova, it will be. :) She needs some joy in her life. Lotsa fluff next chapter. And yes, Megatron tracked her through their sparksong (The call of their sparks. Follow the tugging, and you find a sparkmate ;])

Soooo... Was it fun riding that roller coaster? Not too gory or graphic, right? I tried to keep it tame, but the fact of the matter is war is gory... so yeah...

And yes, I named my OC Glitch. Be jealous. ;D

Review!


	8. Chapter 8

Wow. And my laptop just deleted all of my editing. Frag this. You lucky dogs are getting unedited work. You may thank Dell computers for that.

1) So as you can see from above statement, my laptop is being a pain in the aft. The mouse randomly freezes, and only unfreezes if you put the laptop on sleep mode and restart it from there. My patience, or lack thereof, has made it to where I despise the fragging thing... Kinda wanna throw it...

2) And work is really awkward now, too, because I have all these wierdos crushing on me. There's Cute Motorcycle Boy, Cute Subway Boy, Fourteen-Year-Old Boy, Creepy Cart Pusher, Other Creepy Cart Pusher, Creepy Old Guy That Works In Garden Center, Creepy Beer Gut Guy, Creepy Stocker, Other Creepy Stocker, and finally, Creepy Cashier. It's like my life is a Mary-Sue story gone wrong. Shoot me. =_=

* * *

Chapter 8

4,400 words

* * *

Noise.

Words.

Very _garbled_ words.

Tired. Pain.

Soothing love. No more pain.

Noise.

Words.

Very _garbled _words.

Soothing love. All is well.

More words.

A deep voice. Garbled words.

A soothing, brotherly love.

Love. Love. Love.

**You're awake!**

Sunstreaker jolted abruptly at the feeling of excited relief that shot through his spark at a ridiculous rate. Pain rushed through his body at the abrupt movement, and a strong sense of guilt flooded his spark, though it wasn't nearly as strong as the love and relief. The golden mech groaned heavily in pain, not completely able to understand the circumstances that got him in this condition. He had been scouting a tunnel… No, he had been trying to make a flyer crash… Why was he trying to make a flyer crash? How utterly illogical…

"Well, his vitals are showing pretty positive results. He should be able to hear us, and his optic relays should be perfectly functional. All we need to do is wait for him to online the rest of the way," a clinical, yet familiar voice stated.

"You will alert me when he onlines, Ratchet?" Sunstreaker internally grimaced. He recognized that voice, but he couldn't really put it to a face…

"Wait, wait! He's onlining now," the voice of his red twin suddenly exclaimed in excitement.

**/**_**Sides?/**_

_**/Yep! I'm here, Sunny. Online your optics./**_

Sunstreaker grimaced as he searched for the protocols behind onlining his optics… Was there a protocol for onlining optics? He was pretty sure it was supposed to be a natural thing… With that thought in mind, Sunstreaker focused his attention on his optics and gave a staticky cry of surprise when they onlined, allowing the bright lights of the medbay ceiling to potentially blind him. He swiftly shut his optics off and then hesitantly onlined them again, pleased to see that the medic had dimmed the medbay lights.

"Ugh… What happened…?" the golden mech asked deeply, voice still plagued with an undertone of static. Around him were three mechs: a chartreuse medic that he vaguely recognized to be Ratchet, his irritating, yet important twin Sideswipe, and a blue and red mech that he knew he should recognize, but didn't feel like sifting through his memory files to place. Someone was missing, though… Someone else should be standing beside him… or in the berth next to him… Who was the bot that always slept in his berth during the lunar cycles? Who was the bot that he was expecting to see?

"You went head-to-head with a trading cart and lost," Ratchet stated dryly with a scowl. "Next time, _think_ before you decide to hitch a ride with Megatron."

"It was fun… You should try it sometime," Sunstreaker grunted back. "Where am I? What happened?"

"You are in the medical bay of Autobot Base Gamma. You lost a leg and an arm, but luckily for you, I am skilled enough to repair them to full functionality. In addition to that, you shorted some of your vocal relays, and while those are completely repaired, it will take a while for them to reintegrate into your systems. You took a pretty strong hit on your processor, which is likely why you are having trouble remembering anything," Ratchet stated as he flicked through a datapad. Sunstreaker frowned up at him. So he _was_ forgetting something, or rather, _someone_. They must have been in the memory that he lost… Maybe if he thought back, he could remember who he had—

"Noveshine!" he gasped suddenly. He surged into a sitting position, pointedly ignoring the agony that rushed through his frame as he looked around the medbay for the femme that had been likely been further injured during the flight. Sideswipe and Ratchet immediately jumped forward, both trying to get the mech to lie back down without further injuring him. "Where is Novashine?" the golden mech asked frantically.

"We don't know," Sideswipe stated as he forced his brother into a lying position long enough for Ratchet to activate the restraints.

"We have to find her!" Sunstreaker shouted, anger and worry filling his spark. Sideswipe frowned at him, then looked over at the blue and red mech that was making his way forward.

"Sunstreaker, my name is Optimus Prime… Novashine was a close friend of mine, and you may rest in peace knowing that we _will_ find her. Traachon has already sent out a search party, and the Autobots have done the same," the Autobot leader stated. That when it clicked. This was _Orion Pax_. Sure, he was taller and spoke a bit more formally, but this was still that socially-awkward mech that Novashine had introduced him and Sideswipe to when they first arrived in Iacon. This mech was the one that kick-started his painting career. Despite his gratitude, though, hate flooded his systems, helplessness morphing into anger.

"Well, a frag lot _that's_ gonna do! Megatron wanted _her personally!_ He wants her to be his mate, whether by choice or by force. He could be forcing himself on her right now, and you're just standing there!"

"I have already told you that I have sent out teams—"

"Of _scientists_ and _medics!_ Do you _honestly_ think your little militia can stand against Megatron's strength and experience?" Sunstreaker sneered. Optimus scowled at him.

"Perhaps not, but we _will_ try. We may not succeed, but at least we will be able to say that we did not stand by and _allow_ Megatron to take over our world."

"Ha! Tell that to the five hundred mechs and femmes that decorate the Iacon streets," Sunstreaker said morbidly. Optimus's optics flashed, and he looked away.

"We have searched through the bodies, and your charge was not there. I believe she was sent to one of the shelters, or to the Youth Sectors. If that is the case, she is safe, but we will still be sending one of our own behind enemy lines to make sure. I wish you a speedy recovery." With that said, Optimus gave Ratchet a single nod before quitting the room.

"You really shouldn't be so rude to him, Sunny. He allowed us free medical care," Sideswipe said softly. Sunstreaker scowled.

"I wouldn't be in this position if he knew how to stop a small group of rebels, and stop calling me that."

"That is where you are wrong, Sunstreaker," Ratchet interjected suddenly as he started fiddling with Sunstreaker's intra-linear tube. "That group of rebels is at least half of the lower caste mechs and femmes. The army is about twice the population of Iacon before the attack, and it's still growing. Optimus is fighting an uphill battle with mechs and femmes that know not how to fight."

"That's why I told him we would join his cause as frontline warriors," Sideswipe broke in with a hesitant smile. Sunstreaker scowled at his brother.

_"Why_ would I want to fight in his army?" he spat, furious by his brother's audacity. Sideswipe was silent for a few kliks before he set his brother with a very serious look.

"Because he can help us find Novashine."

That was enough to convince Sunstreaker, as begrudgingly as it was. He would find out where Novashine was, and _he_ would be the one to save her. He was about to reply when a feeling of utter exhaustion filled his body. He looked over at Ratchet just in time to see him release the IL line.

"You need rest. We will speak more on this next you online."

That was all Sunstreaker heard before he went offline.

* * *

The first thing that she registered was the low ache in her frame. It felt, for some reason, like it should be stronger, like it should feel like agony, yet it wasn't. Her memory was spotty, at best, and she realized with a shock that she couldn't recall where she was or how she had gotten there. She vented lightly as she attempted to pull herself from recharge. She was feeling a lot better than she felt she should be, so she must be somewhere safe, somewhere with bots that were helping her. She vented again when she finally managed to pull her optics online.

She was in what appeared to be a medbay. There were two berths to her left and one to her right, and all three of them were occupied by injured femmes. The other femmes were unconscious, so Novashine decided that it would be okay for her to take a look around. She slowly sat up, grimacing at the strange ache as she moved into a vertical position. Her processor fizzed a bit at the new change, but it didn't take long for her sight to center out again. She frowned at how fuzzy the sight from her left optic was, but immediately pushed away that thought. Now was not the time for such thoughts. At the moment, she needed to focus on figuring out where she was and getting some answers.

The first thing she needed to do was get to her pedes. True, this task didn't seem like it should be difficult, but her arms were so… heavy. She frowned as she looked down at them. Her right arm was riddled with welds, and it was held close to her chassis by a metal mesh sling. Her left forearm was wrapped tightly in what appeared to be medicated titanium mesh, which meant that her protoform had a crack that went down far enough to necessitate medication and extra metals to assist in the healing process. Definitely not a good sign. No matter. She could stand up without the assistance of her arms. She scooted to the end of the berth using only her legs but decided to sit there and rest with her legs dangling over once she managed to get that far. Primus, she was exhausted! Just that little distance had her wanting to curl back up on the berth.

Still, she could not give up. She slowly scooted forward a bit more and braced herself as she slid off the berth.

Oh, agony! She stifled a shriek as she landed on her pedes. Her right knee, though, screamed at the sudden weight before buckling under her weight. She twisted to the ground and landed heavily on her back. She could not contain the scream of pain this time. She arched her back in an attempt to take the pressure of the wounds that must have been there, but that only served to aggravate the wounds further. She dropped onto her back in a hurry, not wanting to keep the pain that the arched back brought, but that movement only brought around another wave of pain.

A nearby door _whooshed_ open, and footsteps and voices filled the room as the lights brightened. Novashine screamed again when the brightness caused her left optic to burn.

"Dim those lights!" a mech snapped. The order was immediately obeyed, and a klik later, Novashine was able to see again. Not that she cared. She screamed and writhed on the ground in agony, unable to turn over due to her arm injuries. A mech dropped to his knees beside her, and before she could process, he had gathered her into his arms so that she was seated on his lap and leaning forward against his chest. A needle pricked the back of her neck, and almost immediately, the pain died down. Novashine's screams slowly withered away, and she whimpered as she relaxed against the mech's chest.

"There ya go, sweetspark. Everything's fine," he crooned as he rubbed the back of her helm.

"Ow…" she whimpered in memory of the pain. The mech holding her chuckled.

"Then perhaps you should have stayed on the berth," he admonished.

"Where… am I?" Novashine whispered as she cuddled up to the warm mech, suddenly aware of how cold she was.

"The Youth Sector of Valvolux, a safe place for femmes and younglings while Megatron wages his war," the mech stated. Novashine's spark lurched at that name, though she wasn't completely sure why, and the mech holding her gave her a worried look when she made a strange face. "What's wrong?" he questioned, running a scan over her systems.

"Nothing. Just… tired. So tired," she mumbled as the pain-killer pumped through her energon lines. The mech chuckled again.

"That is understandable. You have been through a lot, my femme. It would be wise to recharge for a bit longer. If you need me, press the red button on the berth. I don't need another scare like that," he stated as he gingerly lifted her into his arms. She studied him lazily as he carried her back to her berth and set her down. He was completely red and black, which off-set his medic-blue optics. He didn't appear to be extremely older than her, perhaps around her creator's age, but he had a paternal air about him. Perhaps it was a medic thing…

"Patch-up, we need information from her if she plans to stay here," a mech voice rose from near the door.

"Don't stress it, Red Alert. You can question her before you leave for Autobot HQ. For now, though, she needs recharge," the red mech responded, smiling down at his patient as he situated her comfortably on the berth. He took a few steps to a nearby cabinet and pulled out a mesh heating blanket. He continued to smile at her as he unfolded the blanket and laid it over her.

"Recharge well, little one. I will visit you again in a joor or two. Rest." Novashine blinked up at him before allowing her optics to dim before they went offline.

"Come on, Red. I am in desperate need of some high grade."

* * *

"So there was no sign of her at all? None of your mechs found her?"

Optimus sighed, deeply troubled by the hopeful, yet hopeless expressions of the two mechs standing before him and the hateful on of the mech on the berth. The red one, Sideswipe, was easily the more personable twin, and he was the one asking the questions and giving Optimus the hopeful looks. The golden twin, however, glared up at the ceiling above his berth, refusing to even speak to the reigning prime. Ratchet appeared to be holding out the smallest amount of hope, but Optimus knew that his old friend had given up most of that the second the prime had walked in with such a somber expression. Optimus had to hold back a sigh at his friend's devastated faceplates. Delivering news such as this had never been something Optimus liked doing, but it was something that simply had to be done.

"No. My tactician believes that she may have been captured, and if your descriptions of Megatron's obsession hold true, I am inclined to agree with him."

"Then when's the rescue team being sent out?" Sideswipe asked automatically, red optics locking with Prime's blue. Optimus felt his spark sink a bit at the words he was about to give.

"We are not sending out a rescue team."

There was silence after that statement. Every set of optics turned to Optimus. Medics and patients alike paused in their movements to stare in shock at the leader who had just stated that the Autobots were going to abandon a femme and allow her to be a victim of the Decepticon's whims and desires. The worst expressions were that of the twins and the resident CMO. Sideswipe looked like he had just witnessed his best friend's death, while Sunstreaker looked at Optimus like he had been the one to _sentence_ said best friend to death. And Ratchet… the medic looked like he had been punched in the gut. His optics were bright and hazy, and he was hunched over a berth, hands clutching the edge in a death grip. Then his optics suddenly flashed as he whipped his helm up to look at Optimus.

"What about the Youth Sectors? Or the refugee camps? What about them?" he asked, his voice sounding strangely desperate. Optimus shook his helm sadly, lowering his optics sadly as he spoke.

"None have found a femme with her description. I'm sorry, Ratchet. We do not think there is any other possibility," the new leader stated. Sunstreaker growled before he finally spoke up for the first time since Optimus's arrival.

"Put together a rescue party, Prime, or _we will_," he snapped. Optimus scowled as he turned his optics to the golden mech.

"You will do no such thing. I will not allow you to lead any of my mechs to an unnecessary massacre," the leader said evenly, his voice calm and deadly. Sunstreaker's optics narrowed.

"Yet you are perfectly fine with forcing an innocent femme to face the terrors of the Decepticons? I thought you were better than this. I thought Novashine was your _friend_," he spat.

"Novashine _is_ my friend, but rushing in and getting ourselves killed will not assist her or save her in any form or fashion. Nova will be fine, and once my mech has finished infiltrating the Decepticon ranks, we will know more about what is going on," Optimus responded. He turned and started toward the door, but paused before he left.

"And I will not have anybot causing dissent in my ranks. If I find out that you are forming a rescue team or even _speaking_ of forming a rescue team, I will classify it as insubordination, and you will spend the next few orns in the brig. Compute?"

"… Whatever…" Sunstreaker seethed, turning his angry gaze back to the ceiling. He would save his femme. All he needed was a plan, good timing, and a few mechs, and once he saved her, he would take her somewhere out of Megatron's reach, somewhere where he could never bother her again.

* * *

"_Novashine…"_

"_**Novashine is not here, my apprentice."**_

"_I lost her… I lost her again…"_

"_**No, Megatron, she was stolen from you. I saw it myself. Those accursed twins stole her as you flew. They forced you to drop her. They are the reason for her pain, for your pain."**_

"_I _need_ her. I _have_ to have her."_

"_**And you will. In time. For now, you must build up our army so that when the time is right, you can protect her from the prime, from the one who wants most for these castes to remain. Be able to kill him and claim the power you so deserve."**_

"_Yes…"_

"_**Kill the prime and take his place with your femme by your side. Build your kingdom and gather the riches you deserve. Give her a world worth ruling. You will create peace. You will enforce peace. Your future mate said so herself."**_

"_Peace through tyranny."_

"_**Yes, my apprentice. Peace… through tyranny."**_

Megatron groaned as he onlined his optics. He was surrounded by darkness, the only light coming from the machines and monitors around him that tracked his spark beat and pump speed. His frame hurt, agony shooting from his wings to his pedes and back again. Somehow, he knew his body would collapse beneath him should he stand, but that did not mean he could not continue his work.

"Soundwave!" he shouted into the darkness, red optics glancing around in search of his loyal new third in command. A navy blue mech silently stepped into the dim light that came from the machines. Red optics were covered by a menacing red visor, and a mouth guard covered the rest of his faceplates. The broad chested mech stood at attention before his master, awaiting his commands. Megatron did not waste time.

"Go search out Starscream. We have work to do."

* * *

"Okay, Nova, you got this. One pede forward, shift your weigh, aaaaaand—"

"Patch-up, if you don't mute it, _so help me Primus_, I will tear out your vocal processor!"

Snorts and chuckles rose from the injured bots around her, but Novashine ignored them as she focused on moving her pedes. She had only been stationary for two joors before she called for Patch-up and demanded he help her strengthen her knee joint back up. The three injured femmes had watched in amusement as Patch-up helped her up off the berth and started walking her around the room, both hands on her waist, holding up nearly all of her weight. The burly mech appeared to be rather amused as well, smirking and taunting her as she took slow, hesitant steps.

"You're really mean for a femme that can barely walk," he noted with a grin.

"Yeah, well, you're really annoying for a medic that's about to lose a leg," she shot back, noting and ignoring the fact that she seemed to be channeling Sunstreaker at the moment. Her threat went unanswered, unless you could count laughter as an answer. She scowled irritably as she took another step forward. She had spoken to Patch-up about her injuries, and she was not happy about what she found out.

She had been severely injured during the attack, which apparently happened a few solar cycles ago. It had been brutal and gory, and Patch-up was certain that was why she couldn't remember it… well, he was certain it was part of the reason anyways… The real concern, though, was that her helm injury had damaged her memory cortex and incidentally deleted some of her memory files. They had worried, when they first saw her, that she would have no memories at all, but that was proven wrong when she started asking for Sunstreaker and Sideswipe while she was half-conscious. At the moment, the two mystery mechs had not been located, leaving Patch-up with the fear that they had perished in the attack. Of course, the medic had not mentioned this worry, and as such, Novashine remained blissfully unaware of the fate that could have possibly befallen her friends.

The helm injury was not the end of her problems, though. Her left arm, which had been cracked to the strut, was healing as a rather slow rate, but that was nothing compared to her right arm. Her right arm had apparently become almost completely severed, and Patch-up, being as he was still new to the field, was not completely certain how to return it to full functionality. She had started crying when she heard that, worried that she would be unable to move her arm for the rest of her life. Patch-up had quickly assured her that he would do all he could and that he would find a medic that could repair her and have him transferred to the Youth Sectors as swiftly as possible. For the moment, though, Patch-up would study up. The Youth Sectors needed a fully-certified medic rather than Patch-up, who was only certified in virus control and preventions and basic aid.

Her knee injury was, by far, the least severe. It hurt to put weight on it, but with practice, the pain seemed to lessen. Within a few breems, she had pushed away from Patch-up's hands and stumbled forward to the nearest berth. The femme currently occupying the berth smiled and clapped encouragingly. Novashine knew the femme would be speaking her encouragements were it not for the injury to her vocal processor. With a determined vent, Nova turned around and started walking forward at a sluggish pace.

"Very good, Nova. Very good. Now, try turning back this way," Patch-up coached. The injured femme vented again as she worked out the necessary movements in turning around and hesitantly coordinated the movements. "Very good. Now, walk over here, and we'll take a break to check up on your other injuries."

"Right," Novashine mumbled as she shuffled slowly in Patch-up's direction. The mech grinned as he let her walk into his arms.

"Wonderful, Nova. You're making some good progress, aren't you? If you improve in your walking, I'll let you out a few cycles early. Of course, you still are not allowed to lift anything up until those arms are all healed up," Patch-up stated. Novashine smiled at him as he lifted her back onto the berth she had been living on for an unknown amount of time. As it was, Patch-up had refused to tell her how long she had been offline after she arrived at the Sectors. She had decided that that was not a good sign, but had pushed those thoughts to the back of her processor. At the moment, the most important thing to her was getting Patch-up to leave so that she could sneak out and find somebot that would give her information.

"Well, it looks like everything's still where it's supposed to be," Patch-up noted after scanning her. "Your left arm is healing a bit better, and your right arm shows no sign of infection. I've contacted a medic to visit, and he should be by in a couple of solar cycles. Your knee joint is almost completely healed and should be restored to perfect working order after a few cycles of physical therapy." Patch-up smiled as he offlined the datapad that contained the scan results and moved to store it on a huge datapad shelf. "I've been asking around about mechs who deal with processor and helm injuries, and I think I may have found a mech that can recover your lost memories."

"Really?" Novashine asked, perking up at the possibility. Patch-up nodded with a grin.

"Yep. Hopefully, you'll leave this place completely healed, but first we need to fix up your paintjob. Gray is too shabby for you. Now, this door stays locked, so don't even think of abandoning ship, and once again, red button if anything happens, okay?" Patch-up stated as he moved toward the medbay exit. "Be good."

Those were his parting words. "Be good." What an irritating mech! Novashine huffed a little bit before relaxing back, exhaustion creeping up on her. Walking had taken a lot of energy from her, much to her extreme annoyance. Perhaps recharge would do her some good. After all, she would get her answers in time… Yeah… rest…

Maybe when she woke up... everything would be just fine... maybe everything could fix itself while she slept, and Sunny and Sides would be snuggling up to her sides as she onlined. Maybe...

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**Lovely Rain Dancer: **Yeah, Traachon is kinda dense. He's gonna learn something very important next chapter, though. *evil smile* Lol. It wasn't really the twins that hurt Megsy as much as it was the epic fail Iaconian army. ^^'' Traachon should probably spend a bit more time having his troops improve their aim. Lol

And no, this has nothing to do with Moonstrike. My future plot will not allow it. :\ This is a stand-alone. :)

**Link's Rose:** Well, I appreciate turning your hate on the mech that seems to cause all these problems. Megsy is such a trouble child. We're still working on him. XD

**Thebookfan09: **Wow. Long review! I loved reading it, though. Were it not one in the morning, I would reply to every point, but alas, I'm just trying to get this chapter out there before I pass out.

I do have a habit of throwing the twins in my fics. Jazz, too. I tend to toss him around a lot, as well… Well, you have guessed right. Moonracer is definitely gonna be there for Ratchet. It will be glorious, and you will watch it happen. :D

And Sides has had a jetpack since G1, silly. Michael Bay is just such an idiot that he didn't have Sideswipe utilize it during the movie. ;D

**Sunstreaker's Squishy: ** Lol, we all have those moments ;) Yeah. I figure energon blades must have been standard issue, at least to a few other soldiers. I figure a few Iaconian soldiers must have them. I mean, they're an army of rich pretty boys (even if they _are_ low caste). Gotta have the high tech goodies to make themselves look good ;)

**Mrs. Knockout:** Naw. It's not in the same 'verse. I actually just wanted to throw Glitch in there. He didn't get much screen-time in _Sisterhood_, you know? I mean, the poor guy died of sparkbreak a few paragraphs in :\ I felt pity for him, and it spawned this soldier mech. I was actually gonna throw Chemical in there, too. He was replaced by Patch-up, though, to keep from confusing readers.

Lol. You think _Sisterhood _was dark? Read _A Caged Bird_, or the beginning of _Hold: a Sunburst Spinoff._ Those are the darkest things I've published on this site.

**Angel897:** Lol. I aim to please. ;D

**Vampireyautja: **Thank you very much! :D I try ;) Yes, this is still a Meg/Nova story, and yes, Megatron is insane. I can't tell you how things will end up (if everyone will live happily ever after, or if Megs and Nova will finally meet up in the Matrix) because it will spoil everything for you. I can tell you this: it _will_ have a happy ending (Because my specialty, after all, _is_ fluff). Just stay tuned and enjoy the ride. ;)

**Iceshadow911247: **Yeeeaaaahhh… That's why I decided to let him live. His death was gonna be so dramatic, too. He was going to jump in front of a blast meant for Moonstrike. He was going to die in her arms, telling her how proud he was of her and how much he wished she was his and his sparkmate's daughter. :') Then she was gonna start that screaming fit she had when Rip-Rage shot himself. *nod nod* Very dramatic and crazy angsty! :D

Frigging loved your review. I guess you appreciated poor Sunstreaker's loopy attitude when he onlined from crashing to the ground? ;)

**Guest: **Yep. Ratch actually wants to bond with her, actually loves her. We'll see what happens with that, though. :\

**Anonymous: **Lol. I already got a list of stalkers, so I'll have to put you at the bottom behind the creepers at my work. ;) But don't worry. I'm tracking your whereabouts with my hardcore super-ninja spy computer (it's made by Dell, by the way, should you want your own;] ). Thanks for the review and the compliments! :D

**Sweettea1: **Lol! I love writing Glitch! I think he's gonna be like Fixit: he'll appear randomly in all of my fics XD I have fallen in love with his character :D

Ya know, I think everyone has started leaning that way. Strange…

**Chistarpax: **Lol. I can understand that. I've been thinking about changing my own profile picture… I can't decide whether I want to, though.

Well, I dunno if you could really call Megatron "respectable." Even before the Fallen, he had that roguish, devil-may-care, possessive thing going on. I mean, he kept trapping the femme and kissing her. Not exactly respectable. Sexy as heck, but not respectable ;D I catch your drift, though. ^-^

Lol. Everyone lives. I'm not done with Sunny or Nova, so I won't kill them just yet.

**Luna Uchiha666: **Yeah… Nova and Sunny aren't going to be feeling the best for the next couple of cycles… or orns… *wince* But hey! At least Nova can sorta walk! That's a far cry better than Sunny! :D

**Cairistona: **I know. My version of Cybertron is amazing. *hair toss* Pretty darn proud of it ;D

Half-dead, but still alive! Dreadwing and Jazz would count that as successful fights! Ratchet doesn't agree, though ;D

Glad you like my creative naming skills for the three new OCs. Glitch, Fritz, and Short-Circuit… I think their days at the Academy must have sucked… Training camp was probably worse *snicker*

* * *

=_= Gag me. But hey! Next chapter will be so fluffy that you'll probably die. *nod nod*. Ciao.


	9. Chapter 9

1) False alarm on the niece thing. =_=''

2) I believe I need to explain Optimus's reasoning behind not sending a search party for Novashine. First off, he wasn't convinced the Decepticons had her, and his army is, at this point, small and not well trained. All his really good, well-known soldiers (aside from the twins, Jazz, Ironhide, Prowl, and Ratchet) are still training in the Acadamy. He doesn't have any mini-bots (they don't want to join up with the blue-sight yet, and all minibots are purple-optic servant caste), elites (Mirage, Tracks, or Elita), femmes (none are allowed to fight, Chromia included), or gesalts. Most bots simply want this to blow over and don't want to choose a side. Because of this, Optimus can't _afford_ to send his mechs on a suicide mission to retrieve a femme that might not even _be_ there.

Secondly, most of the bots on the streets of Iacon haven't been ID-ed yet, and there was not a very good record of which femmes were sent to which Youth Sectors, so there's a good chance that Novashine was already at a Youth Sector (which she is). They have sent out messages to the Sectors to ask about her, but they have not received a reply, and you will find out next chapter why. Until Optimus has the intel that tells him that somebot is being held captive and has an army large and trained enough to successfully run a rescue mission, he cannot hope to save anybot from the Decepticons. Whether that bot is an old friend or not.

3) Semi-fluff chapter, then next chapter will be when the slag hits the fan. :\

* * *

Chapter 9

5,459 words

* * *

There was silence all around. The only sounds to be heard were the gentle hisses quiet vents and the whisper of pedes of the floor. The inhabitants hid behind anything in the Youth Sector that could pass as cover, trying with their very sparks to stay hidden. It would not end well if they were to be discovered. They knew of what happened to captured mechs, and torture was not something they wanted to experience.

They were in one of the many nurseries that filled the Youth Sector, hiding from the coming threat. True, they had not been hiding for very long, but their attacker had been hot on their heels as they fled. Now, they hid, hoping their pursuer would not think to look in their particular nursery.

The sound of heavy footsteps in the hall broke the silence that surrounded them, causing two of the bots to vent heavily in anxiety and fear. The footsteps slowed before stopping. The hidden bots shut their vents and offlined their vocal processors in the hope that they would not be discovered. Their hope was not realized, though, as the nursery door hissed open and the enemy strode in as if they owned the place.

"Come out, come out, little sparklings. I just wanna… play," a voice crooned tauntingly as the visored enemy stalked into the room. "Come on, now… No need to hide from me," the bot continued. The hidden bots huddled back in their own hiding spots to keep from being seen, but one bot was not so lucky. The adversary caught sight of a foot, and without hesitation, grabbed and yanked the bot out of hiding.

"Torture time!" the femme cackled as she put the bot on her lap, and a second later, the captured sparkling was shrieking with laughter as the white and purple femme tickled him with her only mobile arm.

"No, no, Nova!" he squealed as he wiggled under her deft hand.

"No running away _now_, Fireflight!" the ex-elite femme crowed as she continued her "torture."

"Attack!" The single word was called out by the eldest of the five mechs, Silverbolt, but was repeated by the other three that had remained uncaptured.

"No!" Novashine cried in mock horror when Silverbolt tackled her back, easily latching onto the plating there. The second oldest, Skydive, who had just been transferred to his youngling frame, dove into her side, latching his arms around her waist and hanging on as she rose to her pedes. Airraid and Slingshot immediately hopped onto her legs and locked on, and little Fireflight only giggled madly from his spot on the floor.

"Save 'Flight!" he squealed, obviously overjoyed that his older brothers had seen fit to rescue him from his torturer.

"Run, 'Flight! We'll cover you!" Silverbolt cried dramatically over the catcalls and battle cries coming from his younger siblings. Fireflight blinked at him, not completely sure what he meant by that. However, his lack of understanding did not hold him back in the least. Filled with determination and an explicit desire to join the fun, Fireflight rolled onto his hands and knees and crawled over to Novashine's left pede. He looked at the pede then climbed on, latching his arms around her calf while looking up at Airraid, who was still attached to Novashine's upper leg.

"I shall take all of you to my leader!" the femme cried dramatically as she walked to the door, exaggerating her movements to make it seem like the sparklings on her legs were heavier than they actually were. "You cannot defeat me!" she continued as she moved into the hall. She leaned back purposefully and lifted her legs comically high with every step, thoroughly enjoying the giggles and laughter coming from the small beings attached to her body. She received her fair share of grins and amused looks from the many passers-by as she walked in the direction of the commons room, where she knew Patch-up was. Truthfully, most of the Youth Sector's occupants had grown accustomed to sights like these, though, as the five sparklings could always be found with their favorite caretaker.

The five flyer sparklings had been brought in only a few solar cycles after Novashine had first onlined in the medbay. The eldest, Silverbolt, had been critically injured, and the other four had refused to leave the medbay until he was better, resorting to screaming, wailing, and refusing to refuel in order to get their way. That was when Novashine had stepped in. Though she had had little experience with sparklings, she had easily recalled the lullabies sung by her femme creator during her own sparklinghood, and when the four small mechs had started crying, she had started singing. True, she didn't have an awe-inspiring voice, and she was far from joining the performing caste, but the sound of her voice had been enough for the sparklings, who, as they found out, had been orphaned in the Iacon attack.

The five-way relationship had only grown from there. The four flyers slept in her berth, each cuddling into her warmth, and they stayed beside her during the solar cycles, listening to her wild sparkling stories as they waited for their older brother to wake up. Once Silverbolt had onlined and been discharged, the five mechlings stayed in the medbay until Novashine had been discharged as well, and from that point on, they made it a point to stay nearby her.

It had taken her almost an orn to discover that they had imprinted their sparks on hers, claiming her as their adopted creator in that time, and it didn't take long for her to return the bond, making it official. It was strange for her, to be perfectly honest, and she felt weird when she tried to explain it to the other adults in the Youth Sectors. She was their creator in every aspect except for biology. She helped them stabilize their emotions, she taught them how to read and write and count, and she taught the middle three how to walk. She was unbound, yet she had five creations, and she would have it no other way.

"I come bearing gifts!" Novashine announced as she stepped into the semi-crowded commons room. The commons room was large and well sparkling-proofed. In all honesty, it was more like a communal nursery than anything else, but that worked out fine for the adults there. The sparklings could play while the adults chatted. All sensors moved outward as she sifted easily through the crowd, carefully making sure that all the young ones stayed attached to her body.

"Oh, my Primus!" Patch-up laughed with a deep laugh. "It appears you have a few growths that need to be removed, Nova," he noted from his spot next to his mate, Duodot, on one of the seven couches that were situated in the room.

"I captured them!" she announced.

"Did not! We captured _you_!" Silverbolt argued.

"Silence, prisoner!" Novashine growled with a grin as she shimmied her shoulders playfully to make the eldest swing a bit.

"We winned!" Airraid shot back, never one to lose.

"Yeah, we winned!"Slingshot parroted. Novashine rolled her optics.

"I brought you to my leader. I think that means I won," she claimed.

"Never!" a mech voice called. Novashine didn't have a chance to move before she was bombarded with little mechs and femmes, each trying to attach themselves to her frame.

"By the prime!" she cried in dramatic surprise as little bodies started to weigh her down.

"Nova!" Fireflight squeaked from his spot on her pede. Novashine attempted to glance around the other sparklings and younglings in an attempt to find the little mech that she could still feel on her pede. Unfortunately, the other bots made that impossible.

"Noooo! You shall not conquer me!" Novashine exclaimed as she shuffled forward, unable to lift her legs with the additional weight that was added in the form of little bodies. "Rust!" she exclaimed as the weight pulled her to the ground. The word wasn't quite as satisfying at "slag" or "pit," but the femme had worked hard to get the cuss words out of her vocabulary over the last few orns, not wanting to corrupt little sparkling minds. The second she was on the floor, the sparklings moved from their positions to climb onto her frame. Laughter and teasing remarks rose from the surrounding adults as they cheered for the sparklings as they crawled all over the femme's back.

"I believe you have been defeated now, Nova, my dear," Patch-up said on a laugh as he observed the giggling mass of wriggling bodies.

"I surrender!" Novashine finally called out causing all the sparklings and younglings to cheer and shout with success.

"Okay, okay, little ones. Allow your victim some time to recover," Duodot called out as she stepped forward and started lifting the young ones off the other femme and onto the ground beside her. "Quite the defeat, Novashine," the blue and purple femme noted as she plopped down beside the fallen femme. Nova turned her helm and grinned at her friend and the mate of Patch-up, who already had three sparklings crawling into her lap.

"One cannot hope to defeat such a unified force," she responded as she sat up and rolled so that she was sitting on her rear. Airraid and Slingshot released her legs so that they could stand on her pedes, leaning against her shins and resting their helms on her upraised knees to stare at her with matching grins. "Where's 'Flight?" she questioned, then saw him in Skydive's arms. Novashine smiled when she realized that the second oldest had let go of her during their playtime to get move his youngest brother to keep him from getting trampled. The sparkling in question squeaked when he saw that his "danniluk's" attention was on him, and he squirmed in Skydive's arms in an attempt to go to her. Skydive scowled at the younger one before placing him on his hands and knees. The sparkling scurried over to his danni without hesitation, crawling into her lap with a chirp as his older brother headed their way.

"You have a way with children. I would have thought somebot of your stature wouldn't have had time for them," Duodot stated as she rubbed the antennae of one of the sparkling's in her lap.

"My opiluk did not like children, but I rather enjoy them. I had hoped to have three or four of my own once I bonded," Novashine responded as she rubbed Fireflight's winglet.

"And your opi is…" Duodot prodded, as she always did whenever Novashine's family unit was brought up. The white femme only gave her a sad smile.

"It does not matter. Either they do not wish to find me, or they are offline. There is no need to mention somebot who does not care if you are online or not," she stated.

And it was true. Her creators had not contacted her, nor had Sunny and Sides or Ratchet. She had hoped, vainly, that with time, her twins or her intended would search far enough that they would locate her, but there had been no such attempt. She could have been with Megatron for all they knew, but they obviously didn't care to find out.

No. Maybe they knew that she was in the Youth Sectors, and as such, they deemed her safe enough to leave alone. Maybe they were going to retrieve her once they won the war… if they won… Novashine was no fool. She had heard the reports, seen the damage that Megatron's army had caused… was still causing. Most areas, like Valvolux, remained neutral, refusing to claim a side and catering to the general needs of both Autobot and Decepticon alike. It was a struggle, to say the least, and it worried the Autobots to no end. As it was, Valvoluxans had been able to see cannon fire and plasma shots in the distance, but it was brushed off. The city-state where the shots were fired, Dizeon, had chosen to side with the Autobots, and most claimed that that was the reason behind the cannon fire. The Valvoluxan governor quickly hushed the workers with assurances, claiming that the rebels and the Autobots would stay away from an innocent neutral city-state. The workers were disgruntled, but continued mining the rust crystals used to create their candied wares.

Still, she could not help but wonder what Ratchet would say when he caught sight of her and her current status. She right arm was still immobile, and her left one still sent pain messages to her processor, though the injury was treated and healed, which meant that the pain receptors had been rewired incorrectly. Her knee joint, though treated, had healed wrong, leaving her with a slight limp, and the optical relays in her left optic had been crushed during the attack, meaning that he couldn't see anything when there was light in a room. To counteract this, Patch-up had ordered a visor to block out the light and allow her vision, even if it wasn't the best, and he had sent for medics that specialized in her injuries. Unfortunately, these medics either denied the request or died on the trip over, killed by Decepticons normally. there was no doubts in her processor that Ratchet would be furious over her injuries, and Novashine was actually kind of looking forward to seeing his righteous ire again.

"Danni? You okay?" Silverbolt's voice cut through her thoughts, and the white femme focused on the gray and white youngling that stood before her with a pensive look on his faceplates. She smiled at his worry, grateful, once again, for the little mechs Primus had seen fit to bestow on her.

"I'm fine, light spark. I believe it's getting close to your recharge time, though."

"Aww!" Slingshot and Airraid whined in unison while Skydive and Fireflight looked overjoyed. Skydive always loved his recharge, and little Fireflight was simply excited that he would be allowed to sleep over his surrogate danniluk's spark again. Silverbolt simply smiled in amusement at his brothers as they begged to stay up later. Novashine shook her helm though as she rose to her pedes, Fireflight in hand and two pre-youngling sparklings attached to her legs.

"Not this cycle. You need to rest or you'll be tired next solar cycle! You don't want that, do you?" The two sparklings exchanged glances before looking up at her.

"No recharge," Airraid asserted. Novashine sighed heavily as she started toward the door.

"You five have been up all solar cycle. Seeing as you skipped both of your power naps, I think you should go into stasis just a bit earlier than normal," she claimed as she moved down the hall toward the personal quarters, not slowed down by the extra weight on her legs at all.

"'Charge with Danni?" Fireflight squeaked with wide optics. Novashine smiled at him.

"Yep. You get to recharge with me," she confirmed.

"Yay!"

"Yep, unless you two still wanna stay up late. Seeing as I'm going to recharge now, you'll have to spend the lunar cycle with Screech and Shinebright…" Novashine added thoughtfully. Airraid and Slingshot exchanged worried glances. Screech was a black-colored sparkling that had been appropriately named, as she had a tendency to scream when she was feeling any emotion. If she was happy, she screamed her joy, and if she was sad, she screamed her sorrow. Primus protect the innocent spark that is caring for her when she throws a tantrum. Unfortunately, Shinebright, a young and relatively jumpy femme, tended to be that unfortunate soul. Shinebright had found Screech in the streets and had been unfortunate enough to be the one that little Screech bonded to in the wake of her creators being killed. Sadly, Shinebright didn't have much experience with sparklings, a fact that was made known in her interactions with her little ward.

"Can we cuddle?" Slingshot asked hesitantly, as if he were planning on working out some sort of business deal. Novashine snorted in amusement.

"Yes, dearspark. We can cuddle," she responded as she approached her room, which was blessedly close to the commons room.

"Fine," was little one's huffy reply, and Novashine couldn't help but think of how much he sounded like Sunstreaker when the golden mech gave into Novashine when she begged him to teach her how to paint a frame. Novashine rolled her optics as she finished typing in the code to her personal quarters and stepped inside. It was a simple room, really; tiny compared to her old one. There was a single berth that was big enough to support a bonded couple, though Novashine simply enjoyed the extra space. The berth was pushed up against the far wall, and beside it was a small berth-side table that held two holocubes. One of the cubes projected a hologram of the solar system on the ceiling, and the other held photostills of her past…

Even as she glanced at it, a picture of Sunny and Sides flickered on, the image floating just above the cube. Sunny was smirking at her through the picture, while Sideswipe was giving her what he thought was a seductive look. Novashine smiled fondly at the memory the picture brought along.

"_Sideswipe, you look like a drone. Stop making that face!"_

"_Oh, c'mon, Nova. I know I turn you on!"_

"Danni?" Silverbolt questioned softly, looking from her to the holocube she was staring at. She jolted slightly and looked down into his curious and worried blue optics.

"I'm sorry, sparklet. What's up?" she questioned with a weak smile.

"Nothing. I just…" He trailed off as he looked over at the cube, which had flicked over to the next picture, one of Novashine and Ratchet while they were on their date. It had actually been the one Andromeda had flashed over the public comm so long ago.

_**That's right gentlebots, it was our own Liaison-turned-medic, Ratchet, and our own debutante diva, Novashine! **_

_**My reporter heard Ratchet asking some pretty invasive questions.**_

_**Does this mean that there will be a bonding ceremony soon?**_

_**High Lord Protectorate Megatron was spotted not breems later splitting up the dream couple.**_

_**The gentlemech or the barbaric one?**_

_**- She was pressed firmly against the wall, and Megatron had his helm pressed tenderly to her own.-**_

Novashine blinked in surprise at the scrambled memory as it flashed through her processes, something that seemed to happen infrequently. She had been able to recall Andromeda talking about her and Ratchet, but this Megatron… Had she been involved with the mech that was causing so much damage, so much death and suffering? Her spark squeezed painfully at that thought, throbbing uncomfortably at the thought of the mech that was somewhere out there, planning the demise of all innocent life.

No. She had not been involved with him. She knew she could never be. He was a killer, a cause of pain. She had no reason to interact with him. After all, he wasn't her sparkmate or anything, right? He didn't care about her, probably wouldn't even think twice about killing her, so she shouldn't even consider him a possibility.

But why did she feel like a huge hole had just opened up in her spark chamber?

"Come, my mechs. Let's rest," she said tiredly, her spark feeling heavier than ever before. Five small optics looked up at her warily, none of the owners able to understand the source of her sadness. Novashine carefully hopped onto the berth and extended her frame into a laying position, flooding their bonds with love and peace to ensure them that she was fine. Airraid and Slingshot immediately released her legs and scurried up to her neck. She smiled lightly when the two bots cuddled close to her neck, nuzzling their faces into the wires as they curled up as close to her frame as possible, both seeking the heat it naturally gave off. Silverbolt and Skydive were just as quick in claiming their spots. Skydive clambered onto the berth and crawled over her body so that he could snuggle in to her left side, and Silverbolt climbed on and cuddled close to her right side. Little Fireflight, who had situated himself directly over her spark, twittered quietly as he shut down, the calls of recharge too strong to resist. One by one, the other four followed his example, going from youngest to oldest. Silverbolt was the last to offline, but took careful time to say, "Danni, we love you," and send her his love before finally shutting down.

And Novashine slipped offline with a smile on her faceplates and a certain warmth in her spark. They were safe here, and she would never let anybot hurt them.

* * *

"And I heard ol' Megsy goin' on like a crazy mech abou' how 'e needed ta 'win the war ta win ''er spark.' Then Soundwave appeared, an' next thing I knew, I was wakin' up in Ratchet's medbay. Prime, I 'ate ta say this, bu' I think Megatron is crazy."

Optimus groaned heavily as Jazz finished his report. It was the energon on the proverbial oilcake, and a nasty, congealed oilcake at that. Jazz, one of the Autobot's growing stars, had been sent undercover to the Decepticon base of operations under the alias of Quickstrike. His mission had been to gain Megatron's favor and hopefully get some insider information. Unfortunately, Megatron appeared to be rather paranoid at the moment, and Jazz had barely escaped with his spark. It was still unknown how Jazz had survived, but the rumor was that a neutral had saved him and onlined his distress beacon. Nobot really knew for sure, but Jazz had been thoroughly checked out by Ratchet to ensure he was not bugged and had come out completely clean.

Optimus didn't question it. He only counted his blessings that the mech was still alive.

"Do you know whose spark Megatron was trying to catch?" Optimus questioned with a frown. Jazz grimaced.

"No' co'mpletely, bu' I got a few theories…" Jazz responded, looking slightly uncomfortable.

"Novashine… That is who you think he is after, is it not?" Optimus asked, his optics filled with pain and guilt. It had been several orns since he sent out his final search party for the femme he had once called his best friend, the one that had been there for him and understood him until he stopped writing her into his schedule, until he stopped having time for her. The many searches he had sent out before had yielded no results, and he had contacted all nearby Youth Sectors, asking for a white femme by the name of Novashine. None had claimed to know her.

"I think so… which is good an' bad at the same time," the silver bot stated. Optimus frowned.

"Explain."

"Well… we c'n be cert'n tha' Megatron doesn' have 'er an' 'asn't forced 'imself on 'er or anythin'… but tha' also means we don' know if she's still alive…"

Optimus was silent as he took that in. It was true, death seemed to be a better alternative to having a bond forced upon you, but on that same note… he really didn't want her to be dead. True, he had not loved her or anything, but it would have been a great boon to see her again, to apologize and laugh with her as he once had.

"Hey, Prime? 'Ave the twins come back fr'm their mission?" Jazz questioned suddenly. Optimus frowned and shook his helm.

"No. I believe they have deviated from the original course to search the Protihexan city-state for Novashine. Sideswipe sent a databurst to Prowl informing him of this," the Autobot leader replied. Jazz frowned at this.

"You need ta 'xplain 'bout followin' orduhs to those two," the saboteur stated with a frown. Optimus sighed.

"I have. Prowl has already been told to send them to my office once they return."

"If you think talkin' to 'em'll help... We need 'em alive after all. They're kinda our bes' soldiers. We'll need to facter them into our battle plan agains' Megatron," Jazz stated, giving Prime a meaningful look.

"Very well," Optimus said on a vent. "I will call an officer's meeting, and hopefully, we can come up with a plan of action. We need to discern what Megatron's next move will be."

"With all due r'spect, sir, I don' think you'll be able ta fig'yuh tha' ou'. Megatron's kinda runnin' on faulty protocol. 'E talks to 'imself, raves an' rants, an' nevuh really sticks with a plan. I dunno if it was 'cuz he knew I was there or if tha's common. Either way, though, I don' think we can be sure where 'e'll strike next."

"Then I suppose we will simply have to wait for our other spies to send back whatever intel they can uncover… I must admit that I despise these waiting games, though," Optimus stated with a scowl. Jazz scoffed.

"No slag. I'm scared Megs is gonna 'tack somewhere we least 'xpect it, which is the main source of our probl'ms," the saboteur said with a scowl.

"I concur. This is a reoccurring worry for me as well… Tell me, Jazz… If you were Megatron, where would you strike…?" Optimus questioned, trying to bounce ideas off the smaller mech. After all, Jazz had a completely different way of thinking than he did, and the ex-datasong jockey would be able to give different persepectives due to his mission behind enemy lines. Jazz seemed to contemplate this for a few kliks before he spoke.

"Well… t' be perfectly honest, I would try ta strike where it hurt the most. Maybe plannin' anuhthuh attack on Iacon? Or maybe he's going to destroy one of the bigger city-states. I mean, there's jus' no knowing anymore. I know 'e's been attackin' small towns, but I don' think 'e's been targeting any of the nail—I mean, neutral—city-states." Optimus sent Jazz a disapproving look at the mention of the derogatory term for neutrals.

"Jazz, you must control your speech if you ever wish to be an officer. We must not encourage such remarks," he reprimanded, causing the smaller mech to wince.

"Gotcha. So what about you? You've known Megs fo' way longuh than we 'ave. Wha' d'you think 'e'll do?" Jazz frowned when Optimus sighed. It was rare, but there were a few times when Optimus completely let down his mask, and seeing what was behind it never ceased to worry the bots that noticed it. Optimus looked tired. They had not been fighting this war for a vorn, and the leader of the good side looked like he had been fighting for millennia. His optics dimmed in exhaustion, and his shoulders sagged as if they carried the weight of Cybertron, and in a way, they did, Jazz supposed. It seemed wrong for a mech so young to look so old.

"I cannot say. Megatron has surpassed what I deemed possible for him. We are running out of time, our soldiers are dying, and morale is low. We need more recruits, but I do not want to sacrifice any more life to this needless war. For the first time in a very long time, Jazz, I am at a loss for what to do."

"What 'bout Sentinel? Have ya asked him?" Jazz questioned. Optimus shook his helm.

"No. Sentinel has sequestered himself in his lab. When I last spoke with him, he was going on about a bridge between planets in different galaxies. I fear his higher processing power has begun to wear away his logic core and reasoning center."

"An' we don' need _two_ crazies fightin' us," Jazz surmised. Optimus nodded.

"Yes. I would rather leave Sentinel in his lab where he is safe rather than ask his advice and allow him to meddle in the affairs of the Autobots."

"Gotcha… So we wait…"

"Yes. We wait."

"Well then, while we're waitin', I was thinkin' tha' maybe I could 'ave a promotion? I mean, I did pretty fraggin' good on tha' mission, not dyin' an' all," Jazz added cheekily. Optimus sent the shorter mech a look that showed he was not amused, but Jazz only grinned in return.

"Very well. I will speak with Ironhide over your request. Do not disappoint me… Corporal. Dismissed." Optimus smiled when Jazz gave an excited "yes!" before turning to the door and leaving the office. Optimus' smile quickly fell as he turned his attention back to the datapads cluttering his desk. All of them held similar information for once, yet each needed his personal attention. The most important stacks held the names of Cybertronian mechs and femmes that were about to graduate from the Autobot Academy. He had to fight back a grimace at that. Mechs had swarmed the recruitment centers after the attack on Iacon. Some were bots who wanted revenge, and some wanted to see the end of the war. Most, however, were hotshots that just wanted to make it big and thought that the Autobot army would somehow get them there.

Funny how not long ago, mechs and femmes scorned those that fought in wars, Optimus thought bitterly. Now, those mechs and femmes wanted to return to their old lives, and they were more than displeased to find that they could not just _leave_ the Autobots. They had to fight now, as was written in the Cybertronian law. Needless to say, word of this law spread quickly, and now, there were next to no recruits joining anymore. The worst part was that Optimus wasn't sure if Megatron was having the same problem. It would mean bad things for the Autobots and Cybertron if Megatron's army continued to grow as the Autobots shriveled away. Optimus scowled at that thought.

'No. Megatron will not win this. If I have to kill him myself, I will do so, but I will not allow him to take my planet from me. I will end this madness by my own hands.'

With that promise imprinted in his spark and processor, Optimus continued his tedious work, praying to Primus that they received the intel before they were too late.

* * *

"I have done what you have ordered, master." The deep, cultured voice of a bulky mech carried easily over the otherwise empty throne room. Red optics lit the darkness, but only a little, not that that mattered to the mech in question. No, his only concern was that the presence he spoke to heard his words and responded in kind.

"**Of course, my apprentice. You have done very well. See how those blue-sights cower before you. You are well on your way to building your kingdom."**

"Yes… I have attacked the small township to the north, and I move to make Darkmount a main Decepticon fortress. While leaving Kolkular would be unwise, I believe it would be prudent to divide our forces to garner more land and allies," Megatron informed his teacher. A deep chuckle resounded in his head.

"**Very wise, young one. I believe the time has come for me to withdraw from my active role in this war until my frame is revitalized. I shall stand back and allow you lead, my apprentice. Do not disappoint."**

"I will not, my master."

"**Good… Now, tell me of your next attack."**

"I have observed that a certain city-state holds true to the old ways. Traditions and progressivism hold true there… I believe these ideas pose a threat to the Decepticon philosophies and tactics."

"**And what do you plan to do?" **Megatron gave a cruel smirk as he moved to the window that overlooked his fortress. Below him, mechs trained in combat and weaponry. Seekers and other flyers flew back and forth, practicing battle tactics and different offensive flying techniques. Recruiting Prince Starscream to his cause had been one of his smarter choices in the last couple of orns, amongst others. While Kolkular, the capital of Kaon, was not as scenic, flyer friendly, or clean as Vos was, the offer of power was too much for Starscream to ignore. Though, Megatron was not quite certain he would actually give the mech that power when the time came.

"I plan to level it. Destroy all tradition and sacred beliefs. I will see every building as rubble, every citizen as scrap metal. Only one will survive, and that one will tell the world of the great might of the Decepticon forces. Aside from that bot, I want all signs of culture and civilization to be completely destroyed, and in doing so, I will destroy the last of the Autobot morale."

"**I approve. You have grown well under my tutelage. And pray tell, what city-state will be your target?"**

"Praxus."

* * *

**Links Rose: **Lol. I know I changed a few things in my editing before my work was erased, but if nobody else notices, then I won't say anything ;) And yeah… Sunny's a bit of a fragger, but can ya blame him? He's not used to having authority, and he definitely takes offense to that authority being a blue-sight rather than a military mech.

**Vampireyautja: **I understand. The Nova/Megs is cute in my opinion, despite how edgy it is. We'll see how Megs tries to mend the relationship. And then we'll see how well that works out for him…

**Mrs. Knockout: **Yup. Dark stories. Not my forte, but still fun to write. Yeah, my dad calls my laptop "the Decepticon" now. Pity. I call him "Fliptop."

Uhhhhmmmm… Just, uh, remember about the massacre… I would avoid getting attached to too many characters that are not main canons in this fic…

Jus' sayin'… That includes Patch-up. :\

**Leonixon: **Don't stress it. I've been super busy, too. Hence the two week breaks in between chapters. Makes me feel bad. =_=

Yeah. Megatron's a jerk, but that's because he is in the movies. I couldn't honestly make him a nice guy and keep him nice while he destroys Cybertron because I didn't want to make this too AU. In honesty, you know those stories where a writer puts their OC in the movie? I wanted to do one of those, and that's kinda what this is. It'll keep moving and moving until it reaches that last movie. :D At least, that's where my outline stops. :\

Lol. It was more personal changes. Dialogue that needed to be made better, descriptions that sounded weird when I read them aloud. Things like that. :)

**HanamiKaze:** ^-^ I shall not kill y'all just yet! There's still a few more chapters til that happens ;)

**Chistarpax: **Ugh. Tell me about it. My laptop is somewhat bipolar. Sometimes it will work, and sometimes it won't… I think it's some sort of conspiracy. And as for Megaton… we shall see. ;)

**Lovely Rain Dancer: **I guess you're all ready for Megatron to be a good guy again? (It's not gonna happen for quite a while, my dear. Sorry ;]) I understand. I this could be classified as "getting much worse before it even appears to get better." :(

**Iceshadow911247: **Which is why I left Chemical alive. I didn't think it would be worth the death threats and heart-broken PMs and reviews. ;)

"Socially awkward" does sound kinda strange when used with Optimus Prime's name, no? But my Optimus _is_ socially awkward. I mean, poor guy didn't really get out. He had to spend all his time studying and working to be a dignitary. He can talk with a senator without stress, but he cannot hold a conversation with a normal bot to save his life XD

*Snort* The voice in his head is telling him to kill people. *snort* You are awesome. *Gives rust stick* Awesomeness deserves rewards.

**Sunstreaker's Squishy: **Lol. I have a goal of pissing y'all off. I know I will next chapter. This chapter was happiness and fluff. The next one will be sadness and devastation. *evil smile*

Well, Fliptop is a new laptop, and I love him. He just has some attitude issues.

Hope you enjoy my other ficlets :) I take special pride in my one-shots, _Sparklingsitting, _and _Ways to Marry._ I'm still deciding if I wanna put in another chapter for _Sparklingsitting_…

**Angel897: **Yeah. Megs isn't in his right state of mind, is he? :(

**Sweettea1: **Sunny can definitely take a beating. No worries about him. Plus, y'all know I don't have the heart to kill him. I love 'im too much.

Patch-up is an OC. I didn't want to do anymore research. The Youth Sectors aren't really touched on very much in canon, so… yeah. Thus, a new medic is created! :D

Yes, it is the Fallen that is manipulating Megsy. :\

**Thebookfan09: **Lol. I don't mind! I can read e-mails and reviews during breaks. I just can't reply within the time limit. :\ Kinda sucks. Losing touch with the outside world thanks to school and work, and when I'm finally at home, I never feel like taking the effort to turn on my computer, log into FF, and reply. =_= Totally my tired laziness. Love the long reviews, though. :)

I _have_ become pretty good at that, haven't I? Controlling the CMO and frontliners, I mean. ^-^ ON the bright side, I have started Ratchet's little Nova/Ratchet oneshot. It's gonna be cute and glorious. :) He'll have his moment. Not in the main fic, but still. :D

Wow… that is kinda sadistic, but I'm the exact same XD. I can kinda see you as you read it, too. Your heart clenched a bit when you read that Ratchet was devastated, and your breath hitched when he asked desperately about the Youth Sectors. You think that chapter was angsty? Man, just _wait_ for next chapter. Oh, the joy I will have.

And, you're not on my creepers list! I don't think you are, anyways. I don't hire creepers, so… I dunno if you wanna be one…No managing position… 0.o 'Sides, I got too many creepers already. :\ Be my friend instead. ^-^

**Luna Uchiha666: **Thanks! I had to kinda give y'all some happiness before the next chapter. I will flow all of my sadness, frustration, and loneliness into the next chapter. :D It will be glorious and angsty!

**Stellar-Prime: **Aw! Keep working at it! You can always make a story meet your standards. I published, and coincidentally deleted three stories on FF before finally publishing _A Little Burst of Sunlight._ It takes effort, practice, and sometimes failure to get it perfect. No writer is born a writer. It is an acquired skill that few possess. Work at it, and you will get far. It won't be easy, but it'll be worth it. :)

And it's the Fallen. I don't really buy into the whole Primus/Unicron thing yet. I need to do more research and make it believable before I even touch on that particular piece of Transformers canon. XD

**Cairistona: **Lol. It's actually kind of interesting. All these creepers glare at each other and kinda loath each other now. ^_^'' That awkward moment when the Walmart workforce starts a war over you. Unfortunately, it more like having Skidz and Mudflap fight over you than having Optimus and Megatron. -_-"

XD I had so much fun writing Sunny and Ratchet! They don't really have that love/hate relationship that I show in my other fics yet, so it's just those amusing one-liners. None of the hate from my other fics, yet XD

Well, Megatron wouldn't kill these people without the Fallen messing with his head. You'll see this _really_ take effect next chapter. It should give y'all a better idea what the Fallen is to Megatron. This chapter, not so much. :)

And Fluffz ;)

**PepperCornPie:** Yes. This is going to follow canon pretty closely, as you will see. :\ That's where most of the angst will come from. In the end, Novashine will end up with Megatron. How this happens, that is for me to know and y'all to fine out ;) I will definitely be finishing this fic. I just don't have too much time to write right now. :\ Aaannndd… Vanilla. Plain Jane ;)

**AndromedaAI: **Lol! Yeah, ratchet was a bit off… after that shock. XD I love Botosphere's version of it XD Poor Ratchet.

* * *

So that you kinda know how old everybot is here:

Silverbolt: 8 or 9

Skydive: 7 or 8

Slingshot: 5 or 6

Airraid: 5 or 6

Fireflight: 2 or 3

So, I'm sure y'all know what's coming up. This chapter was happy, the next will be devastating. :(

And for those of you who don't know, Valvolux is made separated into two regions: Upper Valvolux, which is closer to the northern pole of Cyberton and connected to Praxus, and Lower Valvolux, which is farther South a bit and has more hills and a canyon. Upper Valvolux, which is where Novashine's Youth Sector is located, makes it's money by mining rust sticks, which taste like candy, but are healthy for younglings and sparklings because they keep the nanites working. **This is not canon! You have to ask permission before using this!**

Let's see... So the Aerialbots have imprinted on our heroine... y'all briefly met Patch-up's mate, Duodot. Not a lot on the twins this chapter... next one will be filled with them, though... And yeah. :D


	10. Chapter 10

1) Behold! The next chapter!

2) I didn't do a lot of editing on this one due to time constraints, so I may come back later and edit a bit more, so don't get too miffed if you see some screw-ups. I will fix them after work. :)

3) ...Sorry. Very sorry. Grab a tissue.

* * *

Chapter 10

9,080 words

* * *

"Okay, Novashine, I need you to stay still while I install this."

"I know, Patch. This isn't exactly the first visor you've installed on me," the ex-noble femme stated blandly as she stared straight ahead with offlined optics.

"Yeah, well, that didn't keep you from squirming when I installed the last one," was the reply.

"Well, if you didn't insist on stabbing my optics every time you switched these out, we wouldn't have that problem, would we?"

"Novashine, I can't tell whether I love you or hate you. Stop talking or I might have to offline your vocal processor."

"Patch, you don't even know _how _to offline a vocal processor."

"I didn't know how to change out a visor but—"

"I can tell," Novashine interrupted with a grin, giggling at Patch-up's flustered huff. It had been one of the first things Patch-up had done research on when she had arrived, optics that is. She had been unable to online her left optic at all whenever there was even the smallest amount of light without feeling as if her processor was about to catch fire. Patch-up had deduced that it had something to do with how her face had been smashed in, but he didn't quite know how to fix the problem. Hence, the medical research. From the research, it had been deduced that the optical relays to Novashine's processor had been crushed, making it impossible for her to online her optics without pain. It had only taken him a few cycles to make the first visor, which could do no more than block the light. The second one, though, could block the light and allow her to focus on specific things, which had been made difficult with her fuzzy vision in her left optic.

The third one, she noted as Patch-up finished the installation and allowed her to online it, was way better.

"It is a new design, meant for spies and saboteurs. You may dim and brighten light exposure as desired, you can activate night vision, locate spark signatures, and lastly, you can finally see perfectly out of that left optic."

It was true, she noted as she looked around. For the first time, her view of Fireflight on her lap was sharp and without blemish. She could easily see Airraid and Slingshot wrestling off to the side, and she could see Silverbolt reading to Skydive. She smiled happily at her five children. Her life felt whole again. The only thing that could make this better was for the rest of her injuries to be completely healed again. Her right arm was still immobile, and her left arm still sent twinges of phantom pain through improperly re-fused pain receptors. Her knee, though repaired, hadn't been realigned correctly, so she walked with a very slight limp. Not enough to truly hamper her movement, but enough to be annoying.

"Well, that's all. I have to reset Karma's arm," Patch-up stated as he ran a quick scan over the femme seated on the medical berth.

"_Again_?" Novashine asked with raised optic ridges as she slid off the berth and cradled Fireflight against her shoulder. Patch-up smiled fondly.

"Yeah. She got in a tussle with Lightknot. Hopefully, that'll teach her not to wrestle with a youngling that's bigger than her."

"Tears?"

"Nope. Bebop said she didn't leak. Apparently, she stood up and scolded the mechling that hurt her." Novashine laughed at that, not surprised in the least. Little Karma was a spitfire, to say the least, and every femme on staff found her completely adorable. "I can picture you acting the same way when you were a sparkling."

Novashine blinked up at Patch-up, startled by the statement and the strangely fond look he was sending her, then she grinned as she brushed it off. She _did_ have a tendency to be snarky and playfully sarcastic to the people around her, though none of them took it personally. She couldn't help it, really. Raised as an upper caste femme, she had to know how to verbally take care of herself.

"Of course. Have you _met_ the femmes in my caste? One has to know how to stand up for herself or else she'll get eaten alive." Patch-up laughed.

"I must admit that I spent no time in the Circle, but I'm sure you made all the little snobby femmes feel like idiots when you played with them on the playgrounds," Patch-up stated. Novashine rolled her optics at him as she moved to the door.

"C'mon, mechlings. Time to go," she called over her shoulder to the four mechlings that immediately jumped to their pedes and scurried after her.

"See ya, Novashine. Try to find a mech to mate while you're out!" Patch called after her. Novashine gasped loudly.

"VIRGIN AUDIOS!" she shouted back as she pressed Fireflight's helm to her chassis protectively.

"What does he mean by finding a mate, Danni?" Silverbolt asked innocently as he gazed up at the white and purple femme with wide blue optics. Novashine's white cheeks burned blue, and Patch-up's hysterical laughter could be heard from the medbay as the doors hissed shut behind them. Novashine rolled her optics good-naturedly and moved pointedly in the direction of the education room where fourteen younglings were likely waiting for her to teach them the basic glyphs of the Iaconian language.

It was a short trip, and she only had to take one detour to drop Silverbolt and Skydive off at their class. Slingshot and Airraid trotted after her as they moved to their class, the class she taught.

"Danni, when we can read, will we get to be a big bot, like you and Patch?" Airraid asked eagerly with a wide, excited smile. Novashine smiled back down at him.

"You'll have to wait a few vorns before you can be like me and Patch," she responded gently. Airraid twisted his lips into a cute pout.

"I don' wanna be a sparkling anymore," he huffed.

"Me neither! Can we be big bots now?" Slingshot agreed, sending their danniluk a pleading look. Novashine gave a single, amused laugh.

"It doesn't quite work like that, my mechs. However, if you work very hard, you might just grow up a faster," she claimed with a loving smile. The two pre-youngling sparkings traded looks and then nodded determinedly at each other.

"We'll be the bestest growed-ups ever!" Slingshot claimed as they arrived at their classroom. Novashine gave them an indulgent smile.

"Of course, my sparks. Now, take your seats," she ordered gently as they moved into the classroom. It was a simple classroom, being as it was so new and funds were rather low at the moment. Sixteen small desks faced a single large desk that held a large datascreen. Novashine gently slid a dozing Fireflight into her sparkling hold as she walked to the front of the room. She did a quick helm-count of the pre-youngling-stage sparklings seated there as she felt her own sparkling scoot closer to her spark and curl up against her spark chamber wall. She had to fight back a shudder at the feel of one of his winglets brushing up against her chamber wall, but quickly moved her attention back to her class.

"Okay, young sparks, let's start this cycle's lesson off by reciting the glyphs we learned last solar cycle."

The sparklings sat up a little straighter as they focused their attention on their educator. Without too much hesitation, the small class started reciting the first five glyphs of the Iaconian language. The progress was slow and rather adorable, but the class made it through the glyphs with little trouble. She smiled at them.

"Very good, my sparklets!" she praised with a broad smile. "Now, let's—" Novashine broke off with a frown when she received the urgently marked internal comm that was broadcasted to every adult.

**::Caretakers, we are initiating a sector-wide lockdown. Take your wards to your designated lockdown area. This is not a drill:: -Patch-up, Valvoluxan Youth Sector CMO**

"Okay, mech and femlets! Since you did so well, we're gonna go on an adventure. Everybot line up by the door. No pushing. No talking," Novashine instructed with a smile, working hard to keep the sparklings from seeing her worry. Patch-up never spoke in that tone, and it was the first legitimate lockdown they had experienced. Her spark squeezed at the thought of the Youth Sector being attack, but she did not let it show in her face. Excited twitters escaped the little ones as they obeyed her commands. The klik they were lined up, Novashine started leading them out the door and down the hall at a swift pace. The young ones jogged to keep up with her as she led them toward the storage room at the end of the hall.

"Oh, no! We gotta hide in here, bots! The evil retrorat is coming this way! Hurry, hurry!" Novashine exclaimed as she opened the door. The sparklings twittered and cheered their excitement. They had played games quite often with their educator, but they had never had to hide from a retrorat before! What an adventure!

Novashine carefully counted helms as the sparklings scurried into the storage room and swiftly closed and locked the steel door behind herself as she followed the last one in.

"Okay, everybot to the very back," the femme ordered as she herded the little ones around the shelves that filled the room. Paints, medical supplies, and other miscellaneous items filled them shelves, and Novashine was careful to make sure none of them fell as she directed the sparklings to the farthest back corner. One-by-one, the little ones sat down and stared up at their educator, who had to force herself to sit down in front of them.

**::Patch, what's the story here?:: -Novashine**

**::Praxus is under attack. Keep the sparklings safe. I will send updates:: -Patch-up, Valvoluxan Youth Sector CMO**

Novashine sighed heavily as she looked down at the glowing multi-colored orbs that stared at her so intently. Airraid and Slingshot, able to feel the turbulence in her spark, crawled into her lap and cuddled up against her frame until she sent them little bursts of love.

**/You are safe?/** She sent to Silverbolt over their bond. Silverbolt and Skydive, being the oldest, both knew how to use that bond to their advantage, something Airraid and Slingshot would be figuring out soon enough.

**/Yes, Danni. Kickback is kinda fritzed, though…/ **Silverbolt responded, no doubt giving his first joor educator a strange look. Kickback was not a mech that did well under pressure… **/Skydive is right beside me. He's reading a datapad./**

**/Good. There is no need for him to worry, and it's good that Streetsafe is there to take care of you if Kickback glitches/**

**/Yeah. Well, I'll let you focus on your class/**

**/Good. Stay safe./**

"Okay, mechs and femmes! Since we are on our adventure, I think it's important that you hear an _adventure story_."

* * *

Sunstreaker scowled at his younger twin as he moped in his seat in the rec room. The trip to Protihex had been useless. There had been no signs of Nova ever being there, and none of the mechs even recognized the designation. That wasn't even the worst part. The worst part was that none of the other Autobots seemed to care. Optimus was always sequestered in his office and had long since called off the Autobot search parties. Ratchet had taken up command of his medbay, and the only times the twins saw him now was when they returned from their missions all slagged up. He would repair them, then kick them out. No words of the missing femme were passed, and no plans to find Novashine were made. Traachon, to their immense surprise, wasn't even aware his creation was missing, as he had been under the impression that she had been moved with all the other upper crust femmes and younglings, and he refused to believe that she was not in a safe area. And the rest of the Autobots? Well, they couldn't focus their processors on one little femme that disappeared when they had their own problems, could they? It was like Novashine was fading away, and there was nothing the twins could do about it.

"Sides… I think we need to move on…" Sunny said suddenly.

"No." That was all. Sideswipe didn't expound on that; he only let his stress and pain flow through their special bond. Sideswipe couldn't fight the feeling of failure that seeped through his systems, either. She was his ward, his first real job out of the gladiator circuit, and he had lost her. He couldn't decide what was worse, either: the fact that she was dead, and her body was lying on the streets of Iacon somewhere, destroyed and damaged beyond recognition; or the fact that she was alive and either suffering at the hands of the Decepticons and Megatron or alone and hurt somewhere without memories or guardians of any type.

"She can take care of herself, Sides," Sunstreaker said softly, though the fear sifting through his spark and their bond betrayed his true emotions. "She did pretty good in the Forge, right?"

"Yeah, with you, me, or Megatron standing over her shoulder every second. Frag, the one time we left her alone, Ironhide kidnapped her!" Sideswipe argued lowly, not wanting to gather the attention of any of the other mechs in the rec room.

"Well, worrying will get you nowhere! She will show up, or we will find her once this all blows over," Sunstreaker promised, a dark glint in his icy blue optics.

"But what if—"

**::Autobot Alpha-1 Team, prepare for battle. Praxus has been attacked:: -Prowl, Autobot Second in Command, Tactician**

Sideswipe sighed as he rose to his pedes along with half the rec room. "Guess that means us," he said wearily. Sunstreaker scowled at him as he followed him out the door.

"Let's kill these fraggers and get it over with. We still have to report to Prime."

"Yippee."

* * *

From the first moment they saw the huge army on the horizon, the citizens panicked. Bots attempted to flee the streets as seekers rained down missiles and plasma on any bot that was exposed. Megatron could only watch with satisfaction as his plans came to fruition right before his optics. The cowardly Praxians scrambled into buildings, only to have the structures collapse on top of them. Bots screamed in pain, horror, and fear as the ground-bound Decepticons rushed through the streets, carrying out Megatron's specific orders: leave none alive and destroy everything in sight. It was an order that his troops obeyed with malicious glee.

**::I have found the bot that will survive, Lord Megatron:: -Ramjet**

**::Very good. Ensure he is injured but not killed. We need to make sure the Autobots find him alive:: -Lord Megatron, Leader of the Decepticons**

**::Sure thing, boss:: -Ramjet**

Megatron scowled at the loose reply, momentarily cursing Starscream's seekers. He was uncertain if the pathetic scrapheaps spoke to their Royal Command Trine Leader in that fashion, but he would not have them talking to him as if he was some sort of commoner. Megatron frowned at that thought. 'Commoner?' He _was_ a commoner. He was fighting for the commoners. He shook his helm with a puzzled look as he pushed the thought from his mind and focused again on the task at hand.

"**You have done well. The Autobots will hesitate in raising a hand against your mighty army."**

"Master, I bid you welcome at my greatest success," Megatron stated as he landed atop a tall tower and gazed down at the pandemonium. Such sweet chaos! Such beautiful fear!

"**Very successful, indeed. For your next move, I would suggest—"**

"I was under the impression I would be calling the shots from now until your return, master," Megatron interrupted curtly, tired of his mentor butting in after every other battle. Megatron had successfully commanded his own raid, and despite his growing respect for his master and mentor, he was ready for the elder entity to back off a bit. He was not expecting the sharp pain that suddenly ripped through his helm. Megatron roared in agony as the splitting sensation shot through his processor, a punishment that he had not thought possible.

"**I will give you command when I deem you prepared. You will not back-talk me as if I were useless," **the voice stated calmly, as if inflicting pain was no bother to him. Megatron growled lowly, but nodded, unable to think through the agony, then just as quickly as it appeared, the pain fled.

"Primus," he breathed, phantom pains flitting through his processor. Somewhere, past the shock and slight awe at the physical show of his master's power, Megatron felt a small bit of resentment and hate grow at his mentor's actions. Irritation balled in his spark at the unprecedented actions. Had his master not been training him for this moment? Had he not been working toward the moment when Megatron would be ready to lead without assistance? His optics darkened with ire. First, it had been his caste to hold him back, and now, it was his own master, an entity that _he_ had revived! He scowled as he ignited his thrusters and lifted into the air.

His thoughts dimmed as he observed his mechs' brutality, something that was easy to see through their handywork. Only a breem had passed, and already, half the city-state of Praxus was destroyed. Buildings lay in ruin, and bodies filled the streets. It was much like his attack on Iacon, the difference being that Praxus didn't have the lower levels, or the hiding spots that Iacon had. Praxus, led by mechs that thrived on tradition, never built downward, and she didn't expand her territory, either. Instead, Praxians built upward, adding levels and expansions to their magnificent buildings, buildings that now lay in ruins. Yes, he could easily say that he was successful in this venture, though that success wouldn't be complete until every building was nothing but rubble. He was certain the Autobots wouldn't make it in time to save what was left of the city, so instead of worrying about time, he flew loudly over the dying city, further frightening the survivors beneath.

"Pathetic insects," he growled with a cruel smile. How successful he had been in—

And it happened.

He nearly fell from the sky when his spark gave a powerful lurch, sending his systems in a fritz. His turbines stopped for two whole kliks before kicking back on. He drifted to the right a little before correcting himself, and he quickly flew to the top of one of the few remaining buildings before landing. His knees collapsed from underneath him, and he rested on his hand and knees as he held a single hand to his spark, as if he could control the painful tugging and longing shooting through it.

"Frag," he grunted when he felt the building beneath him shudder. Now was not the time for a spark attack! His spark gave another tug, and he realized that it was being specific, tugging to the east… in the direction of Upper Valvolux. But what was in Valvolux? He activated his thrusters and shot up into the sky before hovering far above the ground. He stared off in the direction that his spark was attempting to take him, frowning at the distant lights.

"Novashine…" Megatron breathed, his spark speeding up at the mere mention of her name. She was not with the Autobots, he realized with a start. He couldn't figure out why she was in Valvolux, but it did not matter. He _had_ to see her, and it had to be_ now._

"**Not yet, my apprentice,"** his master ordered in his ragged "voice." Megatron scowled at the order.

"I will visit my femme when I wish!" he snapped at the internal voice.

"**She will be in a Youth Sector, Megatron. She will be surrounded by femmes and sparklings."**

"I care not. They cannot keep her from me," Megatron responded, furious that his master would even _consider_ those two factors into their metaphorical equation.

"**Yes, but why not eliminate two problems with one action?"**

"… Explain."

"**That Youth Sector is filled with weak Cybertronians, but each of those Cybertronians will grow to be strong. The femmes in there will learn to use weapons and will teach their young to side with the Autobots. Why not destroy the next generations of Autobot warriors in one strike? Not only will it further the Decepticon cause, but it will destroy what little morale the Autobots have left."**

"You mean to _kill_ _younglings_?" Megatron asked, feeling as if a huge line was being crossed in this. "I cannot do that. I _will not_ do that," he stated as he stared down at the destruction below him. Yes, he knew that there were young in the city, but to deliberately attack a building of defenseless—

"**Have you not already started that? Have you so deluded yourself that you believe these Praxians and the Iaconians you attacked earlier were battle capable? Come now, my apprentice, see reason. This is all for your femme. What if she is being formatted to believe those Autobot's false teachings? Should you not force the Autobots to release her to you?"**

Megatron blinked, frowning at his mentor's twisted logic. "She would not approve of such actions, master. I don't want her to think less of me when she hears I attacked defenseless femmes and sparklings," Megatron said lowly.

"**And you would rather her be formatted by the Autobots? You would rather her stay in their grasp, being fed propaganda and lies? Come now, Megatron, use that logic core you were created with."**

"Master, I cannot—"

"**You will!"** Megatron frowned when the world around him suddenly seemed to get fuzzy. The tugging on his spark lessened as his connection with the outside world seemed to dim. He could vaguely hear himself shouting out orders, but…

His processor lagged a bit as it worked to come up with a logical solution to his problem. Oh. Mentor was fixing his processor again. He must have had some sort of glitch that prevented him from acting. Master had done this for him twice before: once when he was injured while fighting the Ejoorians and again when he was preparing to strike Iacon. Such a repair was not needed before the attack on Praxus, but it was apparently needed before this next assault… which was on… where was the attack…?

Megatron smirked as his senses sharpened up again, and he watched with no little amount of pride as his soldiers tore through the streets of Praxus toward Valvolux, where he knew his femme and future queen of Cybertron was waiting for him. He did not know if there were any Autobots there to keep her from him, but that did not matter. What mattered was making sure she found her way back into his arms where she belonged.

With determination and a sick form of excitement, Megatron glided forward after his army, excited again to watch the unfolding events before him. He would finally be claiming what belonged to him, and the timing seemed perfect. It was just another sign that his mentor had been right. He really _was_ destined to win this war.

* * *

Lockdown at the Youth Sectors, while seeming impossibly long to the younger bots, actually didn't last longer than a few breems. The explosions in the distance died down and silence filled the air. Upper Valvolux as a whole gave a vent of a relief as the attacks in Praxus died away, and life started back up as normal. Educators lined their classes back up and led them back to their respective classrooms before continuing their lessons as if nothing had ever happened. It was by some sort of unspoken agreement that not a single adult sent out a comm questioning the attack. In truth, nobot really wanted to know. Praxus was frighteningly close to Upper Valvolux, and that single fact kept vocalizers off about the attack and adult frames tensed. It was as if the eldest femmes and mechs _knew_ the Decepticons would attack.

"Elder Nova?" a small mechling in her class called out timidly when she sat the class down to write out their glyphs. Novashine paused in her walk to her desk and turned to face the sparkling.

"Yes, Timeshare?" she responded. The red and black servant caste sparkling squirmed in his seat before asking his question.

"Are the bad mechs gonna come here?" he asked quietly. Novashine frowned before shaking her helm.

"No, Time, and you wanna know why?" she questioned as she moved to stand in front of his desk. The mechling looked up at her with wide purple optics and nodded. "Because the Autobots will _always_ protect us." Timeshare took that information in before nodding with a wide grin. He chirped his thanks to her before turning to his work. Novashine smiled down at him and was about to address the class when a loud ringing sound filled the halls.

"Time for fuel, younglings. We will pick this back up once we have finished with our energon," Novashine stated as the little mechs and femmes jumped to their pedes and crowded the partitioned door. It wasn't long before adults started appearing and picking up their wards. It was a timely practice in the Youth Sectors to pick up your appointed sparklings from class due to the strict schedule the Sector ran on. Duodot was the last to appear, as per usual, and she smiled at Novashine as she picked up her little femling ward, Carespark.

"Good joor, Novashine," she greeted with a grin.

"Hey, 'Dot. Been an interesting cycle, huh?" the white and purple femme asked with a matching grin as they left the room. Airraid and Slingshot dashed out of the room after them, weaving around their legs expertly as they played out a huge fight against an invisible entity. Novashine, accustomed to the little ones running through and around her legs during her strides, didn't slow down, but Duodot took more care when she walked, worried that she would step on or accidentally kick one of the two mechlings when they made a pass between her knees.

"Certainly has. Patch-up was rather concerned by the distant fighting, to be honest," the blue femme stated with a nod. "I like the new visor," she added with a sly grin. Novashine recognized the change of subject but ignored it. Duodot, having survived a raid on a smaller town, despised talking about the war, so Novashine decided to allow the subject change.

"Yeah. Patch installed in a few joors ago," she responded with a grin.

"It makes her look like a super-spy!" Airraid exclaimed as he dashed down the hall, his brother close behind him.

"Don't go too far, mechlings!" Novashine called out to the running mechs. Carespark wriggled in Duodot's arms, and a klik after the grinning femme set her down, the pink and white femling shot off after her two classmates.

"So… I heard Kickstart has a thing for you…" Duodot prompted, obviously wanting a first-hand story to spread around. Novashine only grinned.

"He's such a creeper, and I feel so bad for him because he tries _so_ hard, but nothing's ever going to happen," the elite femme said with a rueful look. Duodot grinned back at her.

"Is it true he asked you out for high grade?" she asked, leaning toward her friend conspiratorially. Novashine giggled lightly as she nodded, a wide grin on her face as she did. This was what she liked about Duodot: she would dig for gossip, but unlike the elitist femmes, she made it fun for the other party, did not spread the gossip without provocation, and knew when to stop. It was amazing to actually have a friend like that without having to worry about every spoken word being used against her.

Novashine's line of thought was broken by the feel of a certain sparkling stretching in her hold. Little hands pressed lightly against the floor of the chamber and wing tips brushed the walls as Fireflight stretched his cables to increase the flow of energon that had slowed during his recharge. Nova smiled as she felt Fireflight tap the latched door of the sparkling chamber.

"Oh, I know that look! Somebot's getting restless," Duodot chirped with a grin. Novashine rolled her optics as she opened her chest plates and allowed the latch that held the hold door shut to flick back. The door slid back, and Fireflight expertly rolled into her waiting hand. He whistled in excitement as he gazed up at his danniluk, who was in the process of closing her chest plating back up.

"Danni!" he squealed as he cuddled close to her chassis, smiling up at her with a creation's love as he did.

"Hello, my spark," Novashine greeted while sending a burst of love through their bond. Satisfied with his joorly greeting, Fireflight decided to move his attention to the passing walls, doors, and wall fixtures.

"He's so cute," Duodot stated with the smile every femme seemed to have around Fireflight, and the little mech only smiled up at her cutely.

"Such a little flirt," Novashine said with a teasing smile as she nuzzled her helm against the mechling's, gaining a delighted squeal when she did so.

"Danni fuel?" he asked in his squeaky voice. Novashine smiled.

"Yep. We're headed there now," she responded.

"Sooo… about Kickstart… Why doesn't he have a chance? Is it because of those other mechs?" Duodot questioned with a small frown. Nova's smile faded, and her optic ridges furrowed behind her visor as her lips pressed into a firm line.

"I… I don't know. Something inside me rebels at the very _idea _of mating with another mech. I'm not sure if it's because of the twins or Ratchet. I know I have memories of Sideswipe flirting, and I can remember Sunstreaker kissing me, but I also know that I was genuinely interested in Ratchet and that we were to be betrothed… Then, I always worry… I'm so scared that I was leading on all these mechs and didn't know it. I'm always so frustrated because I can't remember so much. So many memory files were corrupted or deleted, and my processor is always working to correct the damage, but…"

Novashine trailed off with a sigh, feeling once again as if she had the weight of the world on her shoulders. She was missing so much, and the memories always felt like they were cut off, like she wasn't getting any of the facts. What if she met Ratchet and found out that they had actually broken it off? What if she didn't have the memory of some big fight, and he hated her, but she couldn't remember why? What if she was actually about to bond with the twins, but she forgot why she loved them? The questions were never ending, and she hated that.

"Danni love," Fireflight crooned as he nuzzled her chest plating, effectively pulling her from her thoughts. She cuddled the mechling close and glanced over at her friend to see that she was giving her a look of pity and sadness.

"You can't fix things like that without a programming medic…" she said, finishing the sentence Novashine had been unable to. The white femme nodded sadly.

"Yes… and I am still waiting for a medic to come fix all my other injuries," she noted sadly. Unable to stand the sight of her friend's pain, Duodot pulled Novashine to a stop and put both hands on her shoulders as she stared into her visor.

"Everything will be okay. I promise. Everything will be fine," she claimed. Novashine nodded as they turned and continued down the hall, three sparklings chasing each other around them. They turned down the next hallway and stopped in front of the youngling's classroom.

Though Skydive was younger than Silverbolt, he still worked in the same class, having the intelligence to keep up with the older younglings. As it was, the mechlings' educator had already told Novashine that Skydive would be ready to move on to the next course way before the other mechs were, something that pleased the femme to no end. He was on his way to becoming a _very_ smart mech indeed. She was happy the purple-opticed mechlings would have a chance to advance in the world thanks to their new status as the creations of a political caste femme. Eventually, their optics would be changed from servant caste purple to elitist blue, something that Novashine wasn't completely looking forward to.

"Ah, Nova! We were waiting for you!" Lightshot, her eldest younglings' second joor educator said cheerfully as he moved to the open door. "They were very good this last cycle. Silverbolt helped along in the drill very nicely. You have yourself two fine mechs here," he announced with a proud smile. Skydive smiled up at them while Silverbolt scuffed his foot awkwardly on the ground as his cheek plating turned a light blue. He never _did_ take compliments well, always turning bashful when given kind words like that.

"That they are," Novashine agreed. She smiled down at said mechlings. "Ready to refuel?"

"Yup!" Airraid chirped as the three sparklings up to them, though the question had not been directed at him. Novashine snorted and smiled down at him.

"Well, let's—"

The loud sound of a klaxon penetrated the air and cut off the femme before she could finish. The three adults froze as panic rushed through their systems. The klaxon was a sound they had never thought to hear. It meant that there were hostile forces approaching… It meant they were about to be attacked. The younger bots, not understanding, let out loud cries and covered up their audio receptors, scared and surprised by the loud bellow of the klaxon. That snapped the adults out of their panic. Protective programming and caretaker subroutes and protocols onlined, and Novashine acted quick and on instinct. She swiftly opened her chest plating, not caring if Lightshot saw anything, and swiftly deposited Fireflight inside her sparkling hold, then she reached down and scooped up Slingshot, who was the second smallest. She held him to her hold and waited as he crawled in before closing the sound-proof chamber door and latching it shut. She could feel the two youngest as they situated themselves in her hold, having to cuddle up and scrunch together to fit comfortably. With her working arm, Nova scooped up Airraid and clutched him to her chassis just as the comm from Patch-up came through.

**::All Youth Sector Caregivers! We are under attack by Decepticons! Every femme and mech, take your ward to your appointed safe point! All sparkling caregivers move underground! This is not a drill!:: - Patch-up, Valvoluxan Youth Sector CMO**

That was the only warning Novashine needed. "Let's go!" she ordered as she locked optics with her two eldest creations. With that order given, the three of them dashed down the hall, not watching as Duodot, her ward, and Lightshot ran the other way. It had been something they had hoped would never happen. It had been a strict belief that if anything, the opposing factions would see fit to leave the innocent out of their fights. It was a belief and a hope, yet they still created a backup plan just in case that hope was destroyed. Novashine knew exactly where their hiding spot was, and she knew that it would be easy to get there one they got past the commons room, but that room was three floors down, and luck was apparently not in her favor.

The first explosion seemed to rock the whole building, and Novashine felt a sharp sting in her half-healed leg as she stumbled back and forth as the building shuddered around her. The building gave one last shudder before stilling, and dread filled her spark when the muted sounds of battle cries filled the air. Novashine slowly turned to the window and looked outside, only to see a horrifying sight.

There were Decepticons _everywhere_. She could see some stampeding over in the direction of the small town and mine, but most focused on entering the Youth Sector through their newly created hole where the door used to be. Flyers landed on the roof, and Novashine knew they would be entering from up there as well.

"We'll be safest in a middle room!" she told her two eldest. "We need to get to the supply room on the eighth floor. There'll be a bolt on that door!"

"A bolt won't do anything against a plasma cannon, Danni!" Skydive argued.

"It's the best we've got!" she shot back. Skydive nodded in agreement, and the three dashed off back the way they came.

**::Status report!:: -Patch-up, Valvoluxan Youth Sector CMO **

**::No response from Terrabit. No response from Likewise. No response—::**

—**Signal has been lost—**

**::Patch, it's a madhouse here! Get all caregivers to the upper floors! Anybot lower is gonna get killed!:: -Pin-up**

**::Negative! Upper floors compromised! Decepticons entering through ceiling! Meet in center—::**

—**Connection blocked—**

Novashine felt her spark speeding up in her fear as she heard the muted screams from the floors above and below her. Any bot she passed changed direction to follow her, and she felt terror leak through her at the thought of her being wrong and accidentally leading these trusting bots to their deaths.

"Nova! Where are we going?!" Lilt, a green femme caretaker, yelled over the sound of gunfire and the klaxon.

"We're—" Novashine was cut off by another explosion that shook the building. Novashine stumbled with the movement but did not stop, terrified that slowing down would allow the mechs that were only a floor below them to catch up. Instead, she rushed forward to the ornate staircase that led up to the seventh floor.

"Nova, where are we going?" Lilt repeated as they thundered up the steps.

"Supply room!" Nova responded as she ran.

"Wh—" Lilt broke off when they heard screams from the floor they had just left. Novashine ignored the pain in her leg and the fear thrumming through her spark as she sped up. They reached the next floor, and Novashine rushed down the hall, checking back every few kliks to make sure her small crowd was still following her. The sounds of screams ahead of them caused her to freeze in her steps, and she turned to her followers.

"Pick a room! Hide to the best of your abilities! Don't make a sound, don't move a cable! I expect to see every one of you when this is over!" Novashine stated over the din. The crowd scattered, everybot rushing into the rooms that were on the hallway they occupied. Novashine moved to the door on her direct left.

"'Bolt, hold 'Raid," she ordered as she handed the shaking sparkling over to her eldest creation. She immediately knelt down and got to hacking the door with her only working hand. It took a few tries, being as she hadn't done it since sneaking out of her room to go on her second trip to Kaon, but the door soon opened, and Novashine ushered the two younglings inside. She stepped inside herself and allowed the door to close and lock behind her. She glanced around, allowing her new visor to activate her night vision for the first time. They were in somebot's private quarters, not that she cared. She brushed against the two mechlings, allowing them to follow her sightlessly as she herded them into the washracks.

"Against the back wall, you two," she ordered as she followed them. Silverbolt sat down first, and Skydive sat down beside him, cuddling into his side to receive a sense of security. Novashine crouched down in front of them, pulling a Cybertonium blade from her subspace and allowing her transformation cog to weld it to her wrist as she did. She could remember the cycle Sideswipe gave it to her and—

"_Nova, sweetspark, there's gonna come a day when Ratchet takes you out on a date, and you're gonna have to protect his sorry aft from getting mugged. Take the blades. Please."_

She was _not_ going to let them go to waste. She tugged a little on the sling that held her right arm to her body to make sure it would stay tight during a fight, and she sat back in wait. As were the doors to every berthroom, the door to these private quarters were sound-proof, so she wouldn't know about an attacker until he was already entering the room. She couldn't help but be a little thankful for the soundproof doors, though. They kept the screams and gunshots at bay. At the moment, there was only blessed silence that was broken slightly by the sounds of the three younglings shivering.

Then the door slid open. They could hear the sounds of screams and yells of pain and terror past the door until it shut behind the intruder. The sound of heavy pedes filled the room, along with the whine of a plasma cannon. They could hear the intruders deep vents, and Nova could tell that he was likely looking around the berthroom for any hiding bots. The washracks would be his next place to search. She would kill him before he laid optics on her mechlings. Battle subroutes activated, something that an elitist femme normally never used unless she was assaulted on the street or in a back alley. She felt the walls of her hold puff up so that the little mechs hidden there would not be too jostled. The mech stepped into the dark washracks, and Novashine attacked.

There was many things Novashine could claim about herself, but being graceful in battle was not one of them. Her right knee constantly attempted to give out on her, and she was in no way trained for battle. Sure, Sideswipe and Sunstreaker had given her some teasing lessons, and she had watched them spar countless times, but that did not make one a fighter. She was going for the element of surprise, and she _did_ get one stab in, but after that one hit landed, the mech had her single hand in his, and he held her up against the wall off the ground by her hand.

"No!" she snapped as she squirmed, not wanting to give up on her mechlings yet. She couldn't let this monster kill them. _She couldn't!_

"Nova?" came the voice of the mech. Novashine froze, looking up at the mech in confusion. He released her hand, allowing her to land heavily on her feet. Unfortunately, her knee decided to just give up on life at that point, and the joint collapsed on itself. She gave a scream of agony as she crumpled to the ground. "Frag!" the mech cursed as he moved away from her.

"Danni!" Silverbolt and Skydive exclaimed at the same time.

"Danni?" the attacking mech repeated incredulously from a distance. The lights suddenly flicked on in the washracks, and Novashine stared up into the faceplates of none other than _Blackout_.

"Black…?" she asked questioningly, obviously not understanding why he was there.

"Primus, Nova, they said Traachon moved his family unit to the Elite Sectors near Iacon," he said, as if those words explained why he was there. He moved toward her, only to be stopped by two little mechlings, who dashed in between them.

"No! You can't hurt her anymore!" the eldest said as he clutched a sparkling to his chest. Blackout frowned down at them as he put his plasma cannon back into his subspace.

"I will not harm her. On the contrary, I want to patch that knee up. Then we can get her to a medic," he replied. The two eldest mechlings frowned as they glanced at one another, not sure whether to believe him. Then they glanced back at their femme creator, who was shivering on the ground, pain controlling her motor relays.

"Okay… but if you hurt her, we'll beat you up," the eldest threatened. Blackout had to smile at that before stepping closer to the femme that had once been his ward.

"Nova? I need to shut down the pain receptors and motor relays to your leg. Do you trust me to do that?" Blackout asked as he knelt down beside her. She gave a scoffing laugh.

"Do I have a choice?" she asked as she pulled her blade back into her weapons subspace. Blackout frowned at that, but did not hesitate. He grimaced a bit as he shifted two of the plates on her right hip apart and started fiddling with the cables and wires there. He carefully disconnected three cables and two wires and smiled a bit when his ex-ward relaxed.

"Good. Now, let's get you to a medic," he crooned as he gently lifted her up bridal style.

"Why?" she asked. Blackout paused and looked down at her, confusion written on his face. "I'm not stupid. I know why you're here. Can you guarantee your leader will not kill me? Can you guarantee my mechlings' safety?"

"Yes," Blackout stated with confidence as he gazed down at her. "Megatron will listen to me. I am his most loyal mech."

"I did not attack you to die at the hands of your leader," she warned. Blackout grinned.

"You will be fine. Come, you two," Blackout ordered.

"Airraid," Novashine prompted, reaching her hand out to Silverbolt, who moved the shaking sparkling onto her chest plating. Novashine cooed gently to her sparkling, who gave a wordless wail and tackled her chest, cuddling close to his perceived figure of safety.

"So… who's the lucky mech?" Blackout asked conversationally as he rose to his pedes.

"I am not having this conversation with a mech that just murdered half of my friends," Novashine stated. Blackout sighed, perfectly chastened as he walked out of the washracks, the two younglings moving close beside him. Novashine glanced down at the two mechs and frowned. "Blackout, stop and kneel," she ordered. He slowed to a stop and looked down at her in question. "I don't want them to see this," she stated softly. Blackout glanced down at the two mechlings who were staring up at them. He nodded curtly and knelt down. Silverbolt and Skydive scurried close, and Silverbolt helped Skydive crawl on his danni's stomach. He moved closer to Blackout so that he could lean up against the helicopter's chest plates while hiding his face in his mother's shoulder. Silverbolt carefully climbed on and froze when Blackout moved his arms so that he could not only cradle the femme closer to himself but also support her waist a bit more so that her middle didn't hold all the younglings' weight. Silverbolt waited until Blackout stilled before lying down across his femme creator's stomach and chest, his helm coming to rest beside Airraid's body.

"Offline your optics, my spark," Novashine whispered, and the three mechlings obeyed without question. Blackout moved to the door and walked through it once it had opened.

The hallway was silent. No more screams. No more cries for help. No more gunfire. The only sound came from floors below them, and that was the sound of jeering and laughing mechs. Novashine had to repress a shiver as Blackout moved toward the staircase that she had come up.

They were both silent as Blackout moved to the next floor. There were not many bodies on this floor, most of them being confined to the very end of the hallway. They must have been trying to get up the stairs but were shot down before they made it. Her spark squeezed in pain at the thought of her friends being killed in such a brutal, sparkless manner. What horrible creatures she was dealing with, and one of them had been her bodyguard at one time!

The next floor was far worse. Bodies of the innocent and faultless filled the halls. Mechs and femmes that had been trying to get their wards to their safe points, points that while deemed safe, would have stood no chance against the opposing firepower. Her spark froze when she caught sight of Kickstart, the mech that had been interested in courting her, despite her lack of interest. He hadn't deserved to die. He had done nothing wrong. She could only imagine him running down the hall with his little mech ward in his arms, trying to get the sparkling to safety, even if it meant he would die.

It was the same on every floor. Bodies littered the floor. Energon pooled thickly around those bodies and coated the walls and ceilings with gore. It was like Nova had stepped into a horror holo. These mechs and femmes had been innocent! They had not hurt anybot or threatened anybot! Still, these evil mechs had killed them, and she was about to be taken to their leader. Like a defenseless femme being brought to the alpha cyberwolf, Blackout carried her to the Decepticon leader. Her spark seemed to stumble over itself at that thought.

"I'm sorry for this," Blackout stated as they arrived on the second to last floor

"No, you're not. You're sorry I found out. You're sorry I can judge you for it," she responded flatly as she pointedly ignored the other Decepticons they passed. Blackout didn't respond, only growled at any Decepticon that decided to move closer to get a better look. The bottom floor was by far the worst. Bodies filled the floor, but on top of that, Decepticons moved around, stepping on bodies and joking about the dead. She hated them for that.

"Hey! Blackout kept one!" a mech called out accusingly.

"She belongs to me," Blackout responded evenly.

"_Really?_ I was under the impression you needed to ask a _superior officer_ before taking a pet," a smooth, deep voice purred. Novashine's vents hitched when her spark gave a powerful lurch. That voice. _That. Voice._

Blackout turned to face the speaker and knelt down before the taller mech. Novashine showed no respect; she only gawked at the gunmetal gray mech standing before them. His optics were crimson red, and every tip of his armor was sharp and jagged. His very being screamed, _"Danger!"_ yet Novashine felt herself relaxing in his presence, her spark tugging playfully in his direction.

"Well, well, well. It appears you found _my_ pet," the mech crooned as he stepped forward.

"_You are my pet, my plaything. You are a femme sparked in luxury who just so happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time."_

"What have we here?" The mech's voice pulled her from her memory flux, and she looked up to realize that he was kneeling down in front of her. He scowled, then schooled his features into a smirk. "Sparklings? I was not aware you were so free with your favors." Novashine scowled, infuriated by his assumption for some reason.

"I am a surrogate creator, you fragger, not a common-mate," she spat. The mech's smirk grew.

"Such language!" he taunted.

"_My, my. Such harsh language from such a petite femme."_

"_Yeah? Well, I learned from the best."_

"I learned from the best," she mumbled. The large mech chuckled.

"Indeed, you did. I have become quite acquainted with Blackout's foul language. He has a tendency to curse when he is training new mechs," the mech said in a mock secretive voice.

"Yeah… I don't… who are you?" Novashine finally asked, unable to stand it anymore. His face was so familiar, his voice capable of bringing back memories. Why could she not place him? The mech froze at that question and stared at her visor.

"Lift your visor," he ordered, sounding agitated for some reason.

"But I can't—"

"Lift it, or I will remove it!" he snapped. Novashine scowled, but obeyed him. Light flooded her optics, and pain seared through her left one, forcing her to take it offline. Megatron only stared at her, as if searching her optics for a lie.

"You are telling the truth. You do not remember me…" he said, looking pained by that fact. Novashine shook her helm, ignoring the lurch her spark gave at his look of pain, and flicked the visor back over her optics so that she could see him properly. "My designation is Megatron, and from this moment on, you are _mine_." Novashine's optics widened at that statement, and her mouth opened and closed as she fought for words, but Megatron had already moved his attention back to Blackout. "You will carry her to the base in the Neutral Territories. Put her and the runts in my quarters. Lock her up, get her some energon, make sure she is not bothered. I will deal with her when I am finished speaking with the officers. Compute?"

"Yes, Lord Megatron. Your commands will be followed," Blackout said evenly.

"Good. The Autobots have arrived at Praxus and are headed this way. Decepticons, retreat to the Neutral Territories!" Megatron ordered loudly. Novashine could only watch as Megatron walked away, transformed, and shot off into the sky. Blackout gave her a weird look before shifting forward to stand up. The blades on his back lifted up and twisted up as he transformed his rotary motor up. A second later, the blades were whirling around swiftly, and they were rising up and forward. Novashine watched silently as the mechs on the ground transformed and either drove off or rose into the sky like Blackout. Her spark lurched in Megatron's direction, but she couldn't deny how it felt. Despite her circumstances, her spark thrummed normally, and her panic was fading, as if another source was taking it away from her. She glanced over Blackout's shoulder one last time at the Youth Sector she was leaving behind and wondered if she would ever be able to go back.

Then again, she didn't have anything to go back to. For now, she would have to focus on her future and escaping the Decepticons with both her and her creations safe and intact. Until then, she would hold on and wait.

Sideswipe and Sunstreaker would come for her. If nobot else would, they would.

Sunny and Sides would never let her down.

* * *

**Lovely Rain Dancer: **Yeah. :( But, as you can see in this chapter, it's not completely his fault. The Fallen's doing a number on his processor. :\ And I have fun writing the Aerialbots, old or young. :)

**Agent Or4ng3: **Eh heh. Well, as long as crazy!Megatron stays in the story and doesn't truly exist, I don't think that's completely a bad thing… Just as long as you don't follow in his footsteps ;)

And sorry. The twins weren't in this one as much as they will be the next one. Miscalculations on my part. ^^;

And you know, I didn't even notice that until you said something? Yeah, a lot of my OCs _do_ have space names. Sunburst, Solarwind, Nova, Moon, Skyshock. Can't help it. They're just pretty names. :D

**Sunstreaker's Squishy: **Yep. Pretty much. You'll find next chapter that she tends to remember more the "teach me how to read so that I can better Cybertron and help the middle class" Megatron, and for a while she's gonna have trouble understanding that that Megatron is the same one who is taking over the planet.

Awww… *blush* Thank you. I do that with **Ghost of the Dawn's** stories and **Karategal's** stories. :) I never thought I would get to that point with my own stories, though. I like to reread Sparklingsitting, and I'm *planning* on rereading TaCO (It'll be rough because I can see all the plot holes very easily). I'm actually working on a bonus chapter to Sparklingsitting. It's just taking a lot of time to write, seeing as time is not something I have much of. :\ It will get there, though. :)

**Angel897:** Yeah. I think this one was worse, though. :( So much death.

**HanamiKaze: **I love suspense. So much. X3 It's so much fun to write. And you'll meet little Blue next chapter. :)

**TheGhost129: **Yup! Finally got an update out. Took forever to write ^^;

**Golden Eagle 603: **I love how excited everyone is for the appearance of the Aerials. People definitely took them a lot better than I thought they would :D

The meet-up with the twins will be glorious for more reasons than one, but at the moment, and for quite a bit of time, Nova's gonna be stuck with her slightly insane sparkmate. Fun, fun, fun. ^^;

**Vampireyautja: **Glad you liked them! :D I love writing sparklings, and I'm trying to learn how to write younglings, so I needed some bots that would be in those age ranges. Hence, the Aerialbots. :) They would be about that age right then.

**Sweettea1: **Lol. That was the goal. I kinda wanted to give y'all all a spark attack before bombarding you with fluff, so I gave you the cute little tickle attack. :3 So cute! XD

Yeah. I cried when Megatron killed him. Then again, though, I don't think Michael Bay appreciates anyone or anything that doesn't have boobs, quite frankly. He's such a creeper, as proven by the fact that his movies can only have obnoxiously beautiful girls in it (even the extras are model-worthy). The guys can all be ugly for all he cares. Did you hear that he's wanting to hire Megan Fox to be the leading female role in his new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie? *gross*

Yeah, I'm trying to make it logical, but the Fallen and Megatron aren't helping me here. Gotta start setting up for the ending, despite how far away it is. :)

**Luna Uchiha666: **Yeah. :( Prowl won't be happy next chapter. Neither will Blaster for that matter, or Jazz. Both of them had taken up residence there before the war, remember? After Helix got attacked? Sucks. :(

**Opalwolf12: ***snort* I know, right? *snicker*

**Thebookfan09: **Yeah. But hey, I get Spring Break soon. So maybe I can have some semblance of a life then. As it stands, I have to go to work in an hour, so… posting then getting ready :\

XD I _do_ enjoy torturing my poor characters, don't I? It adds to the drama and angst, and you know how I love drama and angst. I live off it! You and I? We're birds of a feather, each enjoying tormenting some poor innocent Cybertronian. :)

And yes. Stay as my manager. Much more fun that way. ^^

XD You came into this with all that fluff? Lol. I bet you didn't feel any fluff by the end. :D Oh, the joys of being the writer. :)

Lol. I didn't notice that until you said something, but yes… in my chapter fics, I kinda do… Only in the chapter fics, though. The main characters always wait in my one-shots. XD Novashine loves them, though, and I love them. X3 Kawaii!

Uhhh… Don't really watch Star Wars, so I'll take your word for it ;)

**Leonixon: **Hmmm… You may have _one_. Choose wisely. *nod nod*

**Chistarpax: **Yeah. :( That's the really sad thing about Megatron: he would have been a very good advocate for destroying the caste system, a very influential advocate, had the Fallen not gotten to him. :( But as you can see, Megs doesn't have much of a choice in the matter. :\

**Iceshadow911247: **Lol! Yeah, definitely kept Chem alive, and I'm actually thinking of revisiting his character again, just because I love him so much. Sadly… Patch-up wasn't as lucky as him. :(

I love my Aerials. So sweet, especially 'Bolt and 'Flight. X3 *personal favorites*

XD Yeah, the twins are still… well, they doing their own thing. And Optimus doesn't really care at the moment. :\

And yes. Very bad things happen. :(

**Cairistona: **X3 I had sooo much fun writing the youngling/Nova part! Oh, those little ones just cooperated so well with my imagination. It was fabulous. :D I love how she worked so hard to get rid of those cuss words, but all that work was unraveled by Megatron. XD And yeah… Patch-up ain't the very best medic alive. ^^; The Valvoluxan Youth Sector probably couldn't found a better one.

Jazz is always so funny. XD The guy is just so fraggin charismatic! I'm tellin' ya, if he wanted to take Megatron's place, he could've taken over Cybertron without starting a single fight, and I bet he's the only bot that possibly could. *nod nod*

Yeah. Praxus is destroyed in the comics. Megatron destroyed it because it was a hub for Cybertronian tradition, and he saw that as a threat to his cause. He destroyed it as a show of Decepticon might, a sort of "bow to me while you still can" gesture to other city-states, and he kept a single Praxian alive to tell other bots about his might. That Praxian was Bluestreak, and he was kept alive by Ramjet. All canon. :D

And yeah. He's my Fliptop. ^-^

**Hubero: **Lol. Yeah, this was a bit of a crazy chapter. ^^; Next one will be even worse. I already have plans for y'all to meet most of the Autobots, and at the very least, y'all will meet Autobot command, so you'll be seeing Prowl, Ironhide, Jazz, Ratchet, Red Alert, and Optimus Prime next chapter. Plus the twins. Cuz nobody can write a chapter after an attack without the twins. :)

* * *

So many OCs. So many deaths. :(

Just in case your wondering, "common-mate" is pretty much Cybertronian for "whore." You know... cuz' she commonly mates... Yeah. "Common-mate" and "street femme." Didn't feel like having to hunt down a word, so... yeah.

And yes... every bot in the Sector aside from our heroine and her sparklings died. Patch-up included. Another depressing chapter coming up soon enough.


	11. Chapter 11

1) When it rains, it pours. Well, guys, between work and school, my life has gotten, well, stretched. I only got five weeks of school left, which means the teachers are really laying it on thick. In addition to that, my mom has decided I need to see every fragging type of specialist doctor available (Optometrist, orthodontist, dermatologist, the whole fraggin' nine yards).

Then I got a side job as a babysitter. These children, I swear to Primus, are Sunny and Sides human form. The little girl, 7 years old, has more energy than should be legal, and the little boy, 4, has the worst attitude ever! They work together, too! The little boy distracted me while his sister got into the fridge, and literally poured EVERYTHING out. Milk, OJ, cheese, fruit. everything. On the floor. Shoot me! Luckily, they've started to warm up with me due to my secret weapon: a cardboard box and pillows. I found out that if you build a box, pillow, and couch fort and tell the kids stories for a few hours, they become your best friends. They literally can't be unsupervised, though. I kinda wanted to die.

2) This one's depressing, too. :\

* * *

Chapter 11

5,955 words

* * *

It was a day of horror for all who had to deal with it. The Autobots were beside themselves when they arrived on the scene, far too late to do anything. Praxus was in ruin, not a building left standing. Dead mechs, femmes, and younglings littered the streets, and there was no doubt that there would be many, many more in the buildings.

Sunstreaker moved wordlessly beside his brother as they disembarked the aircraft that had transported them to the dead city-state. They looked around silently, as every other Autobot did, not completely able to understand the devastation and horror that was the city of Praxus. Where were all the playing younglings and the cheerful femmes? Where were all the loud merchants? As the golden mech stepped forward and surveyed his surroundings, he could see that they were all laid out on the streets, shattered and gray.

"Autobots, fan out. Search for any survivors. Leave no block unturned. I want all living bots found before the cycle is out." Optimus Prime's voice, though strong and firm, did nothing to break the melancholy that seemed to settle over the Autobot search parties as they broke up and followed his orders. Was this what they had to look forward to? Megatron destroying every city-state he came across? Streets filled with grayed corpses? Collapsed buildings and broken vendor carts? Was this the war Megatron was working for? Where did it end? Would the killing simply continue until the Autobots surrendered? Would it even stop then?

**::Find anything, Sunny?:: -Sideswipe**

**::Not alive…:: -Sunstreaker**

The twin mechs grimaced as they split up to look through the collapsed buildings on either sides of the street, each scanning and sending out communication pings to any Praxian that was unlucky enough to be caught underneath the fallen buildings. As it was, there was no response, and the only bodies they found were grayed and lifeless. They couldn't decide which was worse: dying in the chaos that had just passed through the city in the form of the Decepticon army, or living through the chaos and being trapped underneath all the rubble while having to hear the bots around you die in agony and fear.

**::I don't like this. It feels… off:: -Sideswipe**

**::Megatron just destroyed a city. **_**Of course**_** it's gonna feel off:: -Sunstreaker**

**::No. It feels like something else is happening. Like this search party is looking in the wrong area:: -Sideswipe**

**::You think Megatron decided to attack Valvolux? I doubt he would take the time to fly over the Sea of Light to attack Protihex:: -Sunstreaker**

**::No, but there are small townships and villages around the area. Maybe-:: -Sideswipe**

**::Just stop, Sides. I know what you're thinking, and she's not here. Why would she be all the way out here?:: -Sunstreaker**

**::You never know…:: -Sideswipe**

**::Yeah, well, right now, we need to search for Praxian survivors. I don't wanna be the one to miss some mech or femme stuck underneath this rubble:: -Sunstreaker**

* * *

It was horrific. A nightmare. Praxus had always been there, always stood strong. Through the first Great War, it fought and protected itself, its culture, and its people. Yet, here he stood, in the dead center of what he once called "home," looking at fallen buildings and slaughtered Praxians. It seemed impossible.

There was no denying that most considered him to be emotionless, and with his reinforced logic cortex and battle computer, that was often the case. He was forced to make hard decisions based on numbers and figures, and those decisions could not be made by an overly-emotional mech. He could not afford to think about the death he caused in some of his plans, and he couldn't take time to contemplate who was sentenced to death when he couldn't chance a rescue operation. He would go insane from the guilt. However, if there was anything that proved he _had_ emotions, it was this.

His spark hammered harshly in his chest, and his pump moved his energon thickly through his lines. Was this what devastation felt like? Was this how other mechs felt when they lost a friend or a family member? Being raised in the safe and wealthy city-state of Praxus, Prowl never really experienced loss. He knew that both of his creators were likely somewhere in this rubble, along with his femme co-creation. He knew his grandcreators were likely underneath the warped metal that had once been the Praxian Main Café, which they frequented on beautiful cycles like the last one had been. Friends, ex-coworkers, family… all of it… gone…

Prowl sighed as he started down Main Street. Was this where the war was headed? Were these mass killings going to keep happening until they finally destroyed Megatron and the horror he fought for? How could any mech be this cruel? How could—

His thoughts froze when he heard the small sound. He stopped as he looked around for the source of the sound. Sensory panels flared out, and optics surveyed his surroundings as he waited for any follow-up noises.

"Who is out there?" he called out. The sound of a weak vent reached his audios, followed by the sound of shifting metal off to the right. Prowl started in that direction immediately, moving toward what appeared to have once been a painting gallery. His wings shifted forward a bit as they picked up the weak spark signature that appeared and steadily grew stronger as he moved toward the collapsed building. He was hesitant in entering the fallen structure, but he waited only a klik before moving forward. His wings constantly sent him data, locating weak points in the already fallen structure as he made his way through it.

It was eerie how similar the inside of the building was to the outside. Dust and grayed bodies seemed to cover every flat surface, and Prowl wasn't able to see a single piece of art that was not completely destroyed. He ignored his melancholy feelings, though, as he continued toward the weak signal in the next room. He had to carefully duck underneath a fallen beam and crawl forward as the room ceiling was barely held up by a few bent and broken girders. He checked every gray body as he passed them, but his hope slowly faded as he surveyed the halfway collapsed room from where he was in the middle. Only gray bodies filled the room. None seemed to have any color on them.

"Just as expected," he said heavily with a frown. Then he heard it. A small whimper rose up from a few feet away from him. It originated from underneath a table that was currently holding up a large section of ceiling and was lightly buried in the thin metal that insulated the rooms from each other. Prowl scuttled over to the table on his hands and knees in an undignified manner that he hoped his subordinates never had the opportunity to see and slowly started pulling away the thin metal, checking the weak points of the building as he moved each piece. He was treated to his first sign of hope when he pulled the last piece of metal away.

Curled up underneath the table was a gray and black post-sparkling youngling. He was obviously Praxian, this fact evidenced by the gray doorwings and the red chevron. He also appeared to be injured, if the small stream of energon running down his left side was any indication. Prowl had to fight back the urge to grab the youngling and yank him to safety. Knowing the horrors the youngling had likely just witnessed, Prowl knew he would have to be gentle with this.

"Greetings, little one," he said lowly, trying to keep his voice quiet in case the sound waves loosened something in the structure around them. Little blue optics onlined and hesitantly looked up at the tactician. Those optics locked with his, and the mechling immediately attempted to scoot backward, despite the fact that the wall behind him would halt any attempts to escape.

"Calm yourself, young one. My name is Prowl. I am an Autobot." Little optic ridges furrowed in confusion.

"Dunno what tha' is," the mechling said in a small voice. Prowl fought back a grimace and continued.

"It means that I am here to help you," the Autobot SiC stated. The mechling studied the mech before him, uncertain if he could trust him.

"You a Praxian?" he questioned. Prowl nodded with a soft smile.

"Yes. I was an Enforcer when I lived here," he added, allowing a small plate of armor on his shoulder to shift back to show his past Enforcer insignia. The insignia was branded onto his frame, a single five-point star that had two upside-down V-shape stripes underneath it. Bluestreak uncurled a little bit as he studied the insignia.

"You a 'forcer?" he asked, his voice holding far more trust than before. Prowl's smile held nothing but relief as he nodded again.

"Yes, and I would very much like to take you to safety," he asserted, holding out a single hand to the youngling. The smaller Praxian hesitantly uncurled, optics locked with Prowl's, before he shuffled forward and allowed Prowl to lift him into his hand.

**::Prowl to Ratchet. I have found a survivor. Youngling. Mech. Injured. Location: Praxian Main Street:; -Prowl, Senior Tactician, Autobot Second in Command**

**:;Acknowledged. ETA: a quarter breem:: -Ratchet, Autobot CMO**

Prowl relaxed minutely as he made his way back the way he came. It was a little more difficult leaving than it had been coming in, as he only had one hand to work with, but that hardly mattered to him. He had found a survivor, and if there was one, then there could be more.

**::Optimus Prime to Autobot Jazz:: -Optimus Prime**

Jazz sighed as he answered the ping, not completely wanting to converse with anybot at the moment. Unfortunately, one couldn't exactly ignore Optimus Prime.

**::Wha's'up?:: -Jazz, Super Spy**

**::We are receiving reports from the locals in Valvolux about a Decepticon attack there. I want you to take Ironhide, Mirage, and the twins to scout out the area and report back:: -Optimus Prime**

**::Acknowledged. Headin' out now:: -Jazz, Super Spy**

* * *

**::Hey! Prime wants us to head to Valvolux. Le's go:: -Jazz, Super Spy**

**::Yes, sir:: -Mirage**

**::Acknowledged:: -Ironhide, Weapons Specialist**

**::Whatever:: -Sunstreaker**

**::Got it:: -Sideswipe**

Jazz transformed down into a sleek ground-bound alt mode and jetted forward. He had been searching the west areas of Praxus when Optimus had messaged him, and he would have to drive through the center of Praxus to catch up with his search team, something he wasn't looking forward to. He didn't want to see more death. He didn't want to see the aftermath of the Praxian massacre, because that was what it had been. Jazz wondered idly how the other mechs were taking this, how many of them were taking it much worse than him. Given, Jazz wasn't exactly taking it very well (he knew he would be cracking open a few cubes of high grade when he got back to base), but he knew that there were others that would be much worse off than him.

Take Prowl, for instance. Jazz knew for a fact that Prowl had family in the city, bots that had taken him in after he was rescued from that nightmare of a science lab that had held him captive and experimented on him. Jazz knew that, though he had no physical bond with them, Prowl still cared very deeply for his surrogate family unit. And above that, Praxus had been Prowl's _home_. It had been the city-state where he could return and fit in perfectly. True, he had more logical tendencies than most of the bots there, but they were just as traditional and academically-inclined as he was. They were his people, his culture, and now, that was all gone, ripped away to nothing but fallen buildings and grayed corpses.

Optimus Prime, Jazz knew, had quite a few dignitary friends from Praxus, as well. Praxians, by nature, were pacifistic, and Jazz could remember Optimus once stating that he was sure Prowl would be easy to work with because other Praxians were similarly cooperative. It was simply in their nature to shy from a fight by using words and logic to get what they wanted or needed. It was disconcerting—and sometimes annoying—how easily they could make you turn to their side. On that same note, however, they would quickly step down if the opposing argument held the same logic and understanding theirs did. Praxians were good for conversation and debates, they were honest when giving opinions, and they generally wanted to help and serve Cybertron for the greater good.

They did not deserve this destruction and tragedy.

Jazz barely noticed when the four mechs transformed midway through his drive and started racing after him. He was too focused on his thoughts and anger. Never before had he so wanted to kill a mech. Never before had he been filled with such rage. When Helix had been attacked, it had not been razed to the ground as Praxus had been, but rather, the attacks had centralized on a few clubs and dancitrons, and all of those had been nearly empty during the attacks due to the early hours. In reality, only a few workers got hurt, and very few died. It was nothing like this.

**::Jazz, you seeing this?:: -Ironhide, Weapons Specialist**

**::Unfortunately:: -Jazz, Super Spy**

Only a few miles ahead of them was a huge plume of black smoke, one that matched the multiple plumes rising from the ruins of Praxus. It did not bode well for the Valvoluxans, and it made Jazz's spark shudder. He had just seen one city filled with dead civilians, and it was apparent that he was about to see another one. At least, those were his thoughts. As they got closer, he realized that it was _much_ worse than that.

"It's a Youth Sector," he said in horror as they approached the smoking building. It was obvious that the Decepticons had already moved on, but Jazz could tell that their movement had been a recent one. The low flames were fresh, as were the blacken plasma spots on the walls from missed shots. The five bots slowed as they approached the front entrance and transformed into their bi-pedal forms before continuing forward.

"Search for any livin' bot. Keep 'n optic out for any Decepticon stragglers," Jazz ordered morbidly as he stepped forward.

The entrance to the Youth Sector gave Jazz a good idea of how the inside would be. The fortified doors had been blasted right off, and there was a small stream of energon flowing from the corner of the new entrance. The saboteur steeled himself as he stepped inside, but there was no way to prepare one's self for the gruesome sights that would follow.

It was a nightmare. Grayed corpses of sparklings, younglings, and femmes were laid out haphazardly on the floor of the large foyer-like entrance area. With a single glance, Jazz could not even offer a _guess_ at how many lives had been lost here. Energon puddled on the floor and speckled the walls, easily adding to the blackened plasma spots and bullet pockmarks.

**::Optimus… they attacked the Valvoluxan Youth Sector…:: -Jazz, Special Operations **

There was no reply, but Jazz easily felt the strong sense of agony and pain through the comm link. His prime was grieving as much as he was. Jazz allowed him his moment, wishing only that he would have been able to have a moment similar before searching for survivors. He dropped the link, knowing that Optimus would contact him if he wanted to continue the conversation. Instead, he focused on his search, which he knew would probably be very long and extremely painful. He vented to himself before moving forward. He had only gotten seven steps into his search when Ironhide's voice filled the hall to his left.

"Jazz! I got a live one!" the weapons specialist called urgently. Without hesitation, Jazz sprinted forward. He needed to try to save the survivor, and if he couldn't, then he at least needed to get some information on what happened here.

The mech lying on the ground appeared to be a medic of some sort. His armor was black with a few red highlights, one of which was a red medical insignia. From what Jazz could see, the red cross didn't have the necessary stripes underneath it, meaning the medic was still in training, but he also knew that that could have scratched off during the attack. Dim blue optics focused on the saboteur as he approached, and a weak smile crossed the medic's face as Jazz knelt down beside him.

"Don't bother… The wounds are fatal…" the mech rasped. Jazz frowned at that.

"So you _are_ fully trained," he said gently with a smile. The medic gave a self-deprecating snort.

"Hardly… I could've helped… her if I… was…" he said in between pants. He groaned heavily as the wheezing vents jostled his wounds, the most prominent being the huge hole under his spark, right where his fuel pump should be.

"Helped who?" Jazz questioned.

"Novashine…" was the breathy reply. The medic gave a dreamy smile. "I loved her like a creation," he said happily. "Her creator didn't want her… he didn't contact… about her… Me and Duodot couldn't… spark… not strong enough… she was my femling… But I couldn't heal her… Visor… arm…"

"Hey, hey, mech. Stay with me. I know Optimus sent out messages to each Youth Sector about her. Why didn't you respond?" Jazz asked seriously.

"They would have taken her…" the medic said in a broken voice. "They would have… taken her back… to that fragger… Traachon… Hated her… I sent message… to him… He didn't want her… Not refined…"

"Primus fraggin Pit-spawn," Jazz cursed furiously, hating the position he was now in. He would have to tell Traachon about Novashine. There was no getting around that. When a mech or femme died in an attack, the Autobots had to inform the creators. Then Jazz caught up with his thought and frowned as he realized what he had basically come to accept. But it couldn't be possible. Was she really dead?

"Is Novashine here?" Jazz questioned. The medic shook his helm slowly, then paused to spit up some energon before speaking.

"Megatron… pet… Please… tell her… Patch-up always… loved her… creation… Patch-up always… with her… Give her… this…" The medic, now identified as Patch-up, yanked a pendant from his subspace and dropped his hand into Jazz's, unable to hold his own hand aloft. Jazz gently took the pendant from the dying medic's hand and examined it. It was a simple pendant made of a special type of energon that one could mold. While it was malleable in its original form, it was rather ugly, looking much like rusted metal, but as it hardened over the vorns, the top layer would peel off, leaving a shining piece of jewelry behind that was nearly indestructible. It was expensive and hard to find, and it had likely taken this medic vorns upon vorns to save up for. As it was, the pendant was still in the process of shedding the top layer.

"Was for… Duodot… Give Nova… Duo… would want… that…" Patch-up ordered. Jazz nodded.

"I will," he promised. Patch-up gave the saboteur one more smile.

"Get her back," he ordered. The next klik, the medic's optics went out, and his frame fell silent before fading to gray.

* * *

The floor was silent as the golden and ruby colored twins made their way through the hallway, scanning almost desperately for a spark signature amongst the grayed bodies. It was a long hallway, though the frames on the ground somehow made it seem even longer, and there were only one or two doors on each wall, each of which opened up to a classroom that would comfortably fit twenty or twenty-five younglings while giving them ample room to play. Each room was either empty or held more grayed frames. Each room, once filled with sparkling chatter and youngling play, was silent and devoid of life in the most painful and horrifying way.

It was a tragedy, a sparkbreak. The most innocent of creatures killed for no defined reason. They held no threat to Megatron. They could not fight, could not persuade others to join the Autobots. If anything, they held mechs _back_ from joining the war. So where was the logic in this attack?

**::I don't think there **_**was**_** any logic behind it, Sides. I think Megatron killed them because he could:: -Sunstreaker**

**::Yeah, but… **_**Why?**_** He has had reasons with every other attack he has orchestrated. I just… I don't understand why he would do this. He used to want to help other bots… Why is he killing everybot?:: -Sideswipe**

Sunstreaker was at a loss on that one. He, too, could remember that time so long ago that Megatron had fought for the lower castes and had strived to make life better for those who truly deserved it. He had fought so hard for what he believed in. Where had he changed? What made him into the psychotic murderer he appeared to be? The golden mech found that he couldn't answer those questions. Primus, the mech had tried so hard to gain Novashine's attention during her Coming of Age ball, then not two solar cycles later, he tried to force himself on her and kill her in her own berthroom. Where was the connection? What factor was missing from the equation?

Sunstreaker grimaced and pushed the thoughts and contemplations from his processor as he focused on their task. They were headed to the next staircase, which would lead them to the fifth or sixth room—they had lost count of what floor they were on a few floors down—and just like the other staircases, this one had energon on it, but only one or two bodies. Sunstreaker led the way up to the next floor, grimacing and idly scanning the two dead femmes that were collapsed on the strangely soft metal stairs. The next floor appeared to be one of the three floors that held personal quarters. Sunstreaker was pretty sure this meant they were on the fourth floor, as most private quarters were located in the center of a Youth Sector building.

**::Well… I guess we start going room-by-room:: -Sideswipe**

Sunstreaker nodded and approached the first door. He knelt down beside the keypad and swiftly hacked into it, easily able to remember how to break into locks such as these. The energon storehouses he and Sideswipe used to break into as younglings held locks such as these, standard and sturdy. Still, the electrical and technical coding had never been strong on these locks, and like the ones at the energon storehouses, it was easily hacked and unlocked. Sideswipe withdrew his blades as he skated into the room, then dropped his arms to his sides when he received no spark signals on his scanner.

**::Nothing alive in here:: -Sideswipe**

**::Then, let's move on. No use wasting our time here:: -Sunstreaker**

This was the pattern for every door on that floor and the first five doors on the next floor. The sixth door on the left, though, was the one that caught their attention. Sunstreaker gave a low hum as he studied the lock.

"This one's a little stronger than the others," he noted thoughtfully, speaking aloud for the first time since they left Autobot HQ. He grimaced at how his words seemed to pierce the silence. True, he was no stranger to death and violence, but this was so wrong, so useless. He could understand killing another mech that volunteered and got paid to step in the ring with him—even _enjoyed_ he thrill of killing that mech. But this? These bots had no chance of defense, no training to prepare them for this tragedy.

"It looks kinda like that lock we talked to Nova about…" Sideswipe observed as he leaned over his brother's shoulder to examine the lock himself. Sunstreaker rolled his optics at his twins insatiable need to pine after Novashine, a femme that was very likely dead, but still… he couldn't deny that his brother's words appeared to be true. The lock on the door was identical to the others aside from the small rectangular box that was attached to the bottom of the standard pentagonal lock. It was familiar because Sideswipe and Sunstreaker had explained to her how to wire that small box to further fortify these weak, yet customary locks. He could even remember when they taught her the lesson, which she had claimed to be one of the many useless, yet interesting things they taught her.

"Sunny, I don't like this…" Sideswipe said slowly as he watched his brother hack the lock with a bit of effort. Sunstreaker sent his agreement through their bond as the door slid open to reveal a room that looked nearly identical to the rooms they had last visited. However, the things that decorated the small berth-side table and the small set of shelves that was situated by the entrance of the personal washracks made it painfully obvious what made this room different than all the others they had gone through before it.

"She was here…" Sideswipe breathed, horror and pain easily heard in his tone. He moved forward as if in a daze, coming to a stop before the cube that displayed a photostill of Novashine and Sunstreaker. She was currently forcing the two sides of the golden mech's lips up into a false smile, ignoring his furiously bright crimson optics as she giggled up at him while Sideswipe took a discreet photostill of them.

"_Get off me, you little runt!"_

"_C'mon, Sunny! Smile for me!"_

"_Get off me, glitch!"_

"_Swear word, fragger!"_

"_You both owe me a credit!"_

"_Mute it, Sides!"_

"Sideswipe, it's her jewel inlays!" Sunstreaker called over from his spot by her shelves. Sideswipe lifted up the photocube and walked over to his brother, who was currently holding a decorative metal box that held a rather large amount of decorative jewels that would normally be added to a wealthy femme's armor as an accessory. In these times, such fineries were nearly worthless, seeing as nobot could afford to buy or trade anything for them. Such funds were saved for energon and medical emergencies. The twins quickly deduced that they had been in her subspace during the Battle of Iacon City.

"She was here," Sideswipe said flatly. "She was here, and now, she's either dead or taken."

**::Jazz to twins. You're not gonna like this, mechs, but Nova was here, and she's now in the hands of Megatron:: -Jazz, Special Operations **

The twins froze, horror icing their energon lines, then fury melted those lines back down.

"I knew it! I knew she was in danger!" Sideswipe yelled furiously as he laid a fist into the nearest wall.

"Don't worry, Sides. We'll get her back. We'll get her back, and we'll make Megatron regret even _thinking_ about hurting her," Sunstreaker said, his voice holding nothing but dark promise. Sideswipe turned crimson optics to meet his brother's identically red optics and gave a menacing grin that was more at home on the golden mech's face.

"We may not be the best Autobots, but we'll be the strongest, the most feared," he agreed. "First, we find out where they're keeping Nova."

"And we hope that the Decepticons haven't done anything to her."

"Primus, she must be scared. Sunny, what if she thinks we forgot about her?"

"We'll make sure she knows we didn't. After we rescue her, we won't let her out of our sight, anyways. Let's report to Jazz and get this show on the road."

With that said, the two mechs subspaced the last of Novashine's belongings before abandoning the room and heading back to the lower floors where Jazz would be waiting for them.

* * *

Red optics.

That was the only thing that stood out to her: the many, _many_ sets of taunting red optics that were locked on her and Blackout as he carried her through the base. Mechs leered at her and grinned at her, and she wasn't sure what to make of the looks. She knew they were brutal and cruel, but those looks were not meant for a prey that was about to be killed. No, those optics held the same glint Nova had seen in the optics of a cybercat that had a small glitchmouse in its sights. It was the look meant for prey that was being toyed with, a thought that terrified her.

"Blackout, I will be sending Hook to check on her knee joint and other injuries. Stand guard until he arrives," Megatron ordered over his shoulder as Blackout broke off from the group of mechs returning from the massacre.

"Yes, sir!" Blackout responded as he continued down a hall that was less crowded. Silverbolt gave a full body shudder when he made the mistake of glancing up at the other mechs in the hall. Most of them had dried energon spatters on them, and every one of them looked menacing, armor sharp and claws adorning their digits. Novashine purred lightly to comfort him as he hid his face again.

"This is where you'll be staying," Blackout stated as he paused by a door. Novashine blinked in surprise when she became aware that he was sending a wireless signal to open the door. Said door gave a loud _hiss_ as it opened, causing Silverbolt to wince, but it was ignored as Blackout stepped into the room.

It was a large room, if one was to compare it to her quarters at the Youth Sector, and had similar commodities. Three sets of shelves stood side-by-side against the right wall, each containing nothing but datapads. Parallel to those shelves was a wall that held only door that likely led to a private washrack and a hanging shelf that held random odds and ends that made no sense to Novashine. The back wall was unfurnished, having only a single door that was shut and likely locked, if the pentagonal box beside it was anything to go by. The final piece of furnishings in the room was an oversized berth that was placed in the center of the room, and that was where Blackout placed her, being as gentle as one would with glass. The two adults stared at each other as the elder mech took a step back.

"You've grown," Blackout noted, his voice borderline-awkward. "And you got a new paintjob." Novashine glanced down at herself, overlooking small flyers bodies as she looked at her white and purple paintjob. It occurred to her then that the last time Blackout had seen her, she had been gold and white. Whereas the gold had merely accented her helm and legs before, the purple covered her waist plating and shoulders and accented her helm. Youth Sectors didn't allow for the spending of credits on meaningless paint. Her gold-flecked starburst paint would not be purchased while she was in their care. Rather, the femmes there had selected royal purple for her, a color that spoke of trustworthiness and wealth. Strangely enough, Novashine found she liked this color better simply because of the care and thought that had gone into the decision.

"Yeah. Bots change, don't they?" she said rather flatly, wishing he could see her glare through her black visor.

"And you got a visor…" he continued, as if he were trying hard to make peace.

"Yeah. I got thrown into a building. My left optic can't process light."

There was a moment of silence after that as the two bots studied each other. Blackout looked more dangerous now, Novashine decided as she took in the 'copter bot's appearance. His armor was now far more jagged and pointed than it had been before, and his red optics seemed to hold a fierce sort of cruelty that had not been there before. Gone was the teasing glint and sarcastic smirk. Replacing that was a deeply set scowl and angry crimson orbs. This Megatron had changed him for the worse.

"You do not forgive me," her former bodyguard noted grimly, his optics dimming only a little as he took in her appearance.

"You expect different?" she responded, turning her attention momentarily to Airraid, who had moved in his recharge, before returning her gaze to Blackout.

"I had hoped—"

"Yes, well, that hoping does not often enact changes, does it? Bring my friends and coworkers back to life, and we shall have this conversation again. Revive all that have lost their sparks in your leader's aimless destruction, and I shall consider reinstating you. Fix _every little thing_ you have destroyed, repair all the broken bonds, cease this pointless war! End this meaningless murder, and I shall consider it!" Novashine shouted, tears gathering in her optics. "Until then, do not insult me with your worthless words. Do not beg for forgiveness when you have destroyed my means of happiness."

By the time she had finished her impassioned spiel, Blackout looked torn between fury and agony. She dared to turn down his apology when he had spared her? He could have killed her, just like every other nail* that had loitered around that useless Youth Sector! He could have tortured her, like many of the lower caste Decepticons had done to blue-sight prisoners! Instead, out of the goodness of his spark, he had spared her and her younglings, yet she scorned him!

"I will not beg for forgiveness," Blackout bit out, noting vaguely that the eldest youngling glanced up at him at his tone. Still, Novashine was unswayed.

"I would not ask you to. I am not a murderer, and I refuse to ally myself with one." Blackout growled lowly at this, and without another word, he stomped out of the room, not stopping until the door hissed shut behind him, leaving the small family unit in silence behind it.

Novashine's body when limp as the last source of stress exited the room. She had been lucky, to be honest. She had been lucky that the mech that discovered her first had been one that could not harm her. She had been lucky that, for some reason unknown to her, Megatron had seen fit to spare her and her little mechs, and she had been lucky that Airraid and Skydive had dropped into recharge during the flight to base, keeping them from seeing the piercing, cruel gazes of the Decepticons as Megatron led Blackout and by extension, the captive family past them.

That, however, was where the luck ended. She was now the Decepticon leader's pet, whatever that meant. Though she had her mechlings with her, she could not be certain how they would be treated. She had lost everything she held dear to her back in the Sectors.

The worst thing, however, was the blaring fact that nobot knew where she was. Nobot knew—or cared—that she was alive and in the arms of the enemy. She would be left here to rust or die, whichever came first, or she would be made into a pleasure doll, a thought that terrified her to the core. Either way, she was in for a rough couple of vorns, and she could only hope that somebot saved her before it was too late. It was a hope that she didn't put too much stock in.

From this point on, she would have to watch out for herself.

* * *

**The Ghost:** I know, right? My updates are getting sparser and sparser. =_=; Life sucks sometimes.

**Agent 0r4ng3: **I'm glad you mentioned that. I hadn't even realized I didn't say what color her visor was! D: It's actually gray because she's a neutral. Colored visors (in my 'verse) didn't come in until the war.

Lol. You're comment kinda oozed sarcasm (I dunno if you meant for it to). No, the Fallen can't really rewrite coding. Think of it this way: he's in Megatron's mind. When you're in somebody's mind, it's easy to influence. Soon, you'll see that the Fallen can't directly influence Megatron's thoughts like that anymore, and that will happen when he finally returns to his own body. At that point, he just uses deceit and words. *nod nod*

Glad you liked it, though. :) I can't wait for them to find her. That's a long time coming, though. :\ Poor nova. ^^;

**Iceshadow911247: **I know, right. I kept crying as I wrote this one. TT^TT Depressing to write, and depressing to read.

XD I knew someone would use one of my new OCs for a pun! So many names!

But, hey! This chapter should be the last of the super depressing ones! :D

**Angel897: **Very glad you liked it! Don't worry, though. Things will end happily somehow. *nod nod*

**Golden Eagle 603:** Thank you! I tried very hard to put emotion in these past chapters. I figured that if I can bring myself to tears, I can make all y'all cry as well. ^-^

Very bad situation, though. It'll be fun writing how Nova and the Aerials act during their "captivity."

**Thebookfan09: **… I'm sorrrrrryyyyy! D'X I killed him! He couldn't live. Logically, the 'cons wouldn't have left him alive. :( I know, though! He had that same epic failness and cute clumsiness that Fixit has, no? My spark breaks! DX

Yes, Kickback was also planned to die. I felt really bad at the end of the chapter, because I created all these bots, and I fell in love with them. Then I had to kill them all. I tried so hard not to get attatched… but alas, it was a losing battle. U.U

I'm having fun with Blackout. In honesty, I had planned to completely cut him out of the story after the first chapter. That was why I brought in Sunny and Sides, but… I dunno. He keeps popping up!

Lol. Yeah, I think people underestimate the Fallen. I mean, the original 13 primes were made to destroy Unicron, so wouldn't they be powerful? After all, if Optimus wouldn't have come back in TF2, they wouldn't have been able to defeat him. Only a prime can kill another prime.

I prefer drama over… I dunno… mercy? Maybe? If I spare everyone, then it destroys the conflict and the logic behind war. I mean… people die in war. It's how it works. If people didn't die, then it would be called a debate, you know? Because what is war, other than an argument that escalated to killing? I mean, I know there's more shades of gray, and there's always some creeper wanting tons of power, but… yeah…

! Yay! Clothing line! OMG, OMG, OMG! I've always wanted one. I, like, totally think I could, like, make a good one, like, OMG! XD But seriously, I think we need to take that a little slower. *nod nod* If we move too fast, people will ridicule us, like they did when Rosie Huntington-Whitley (or whatever her name is) and Rhianna. *nod nod*

Lol! I guess so! It's probably because of the influence the guys have n them… I mean… Jazz, Starscream, the twins, and Ratchet vs. Optimus and Megatron? The former four are obviously more responsible. ;)

Silly boy! I've seen them, and my dad friggin loves them… I just don't like 'em. *shrug* Not my cup of tea.

**Sunstreaker's Squishy: **I know. :( Megsy is a jerk, and now she's stuck with him for the indiscernible future. I bet you don't know, though. ;) Imma keep y'all guessing. I bet you won't expect what happens next chapter. *mischievous smile*

**Luna Uchiha666: **Lol. Yeah, probably. Sides will probably be worse than Sunny, but it'll be fabulous, either way, because it's the twins being possessive and sexy. :D Super excited for that, but it'll be a whilie. ;)

**Emajade32439: **I'm looking forward to her memory being restored, too, but it'll be a little bit. Memory files don't just fix themselves. Hook'll probably do a better job than poor Patch-up, though ^^;

**Kurohane Ookami: **I'm so sorrrrry! DX I cried while I was writing it, if that makes you feel better! Times are rough, but it can only get better! I mean… it can't get any worse, right? :)

**HanamiKaze: **I know. It's heartbreaking. :( I had trouble writing it, but I put my very soul into the last chapter and this one. Probably why it's so heart-wrenching. TT^TT

**Vampireyautja: **Eh heh. Yeah, Megsy is a bit off the deep end, but it's not completely his fault. The Fallen's kinda hanging out in his head… Not quite the bot you want playing with your processes. :\ You'll get some Megatron/Aerials interaction next chapter. I dunno if I want him to be paternal to them or mean… I suppose whatever appears is what appears. He won't kill them, though. :)

**Lovely Rain Dancer: **Moment of silence. TT^TT

**Sweettea1: **Lol! I couldn't even tell you. Bay is an idiot. Who can say, though? I know she's gonna ruin that movie. Well, it might be ruined anyways. Apparently, they screwed up the turtles' personalities anyways. :\ Micheal needs to retire.

Yeah. Super depressing chapter. :( Reasons behind joining the cons and such will be addressed next chapter, but yeah… Blackout seems to nice to join, but only when he's around his charge. If he didn't already know her and have those guardian subroutes, he would have killed her along with the other femmes and sparklings he killed. Just because he is nice to one person doesn't make him a good guy. :\ I wish, though. I see him in a new light in the movie, now, though. ^^;

Thank you for the compliments. I put my soul into these last chapters. My goal was to _**tell**_ the story, rather than just telling it, if you know what I mean.

**Link's Rose: **Lol. Random review! ^^;

**AndromedaAI: **Yeah. I hated last chapter. I fell in love with all those sparklings and femmes. Kickback and his awkwardness. Karma with her inability to figure out consequences to her actions. Duodot… an amazing best friend. :'( So sad.

Lol. I love my adamant Nova/twins shippers. There are so many. Well, things will come up, and Nova _will_ end up with Megatron. It will be interesting seeing how she does, though. :)

**PepperCornPie: **So you saw it coming, huh? I was wondering how many people would. Very sad moment in Cybertronian history. Very sad.

When Megatron dropped Novashine a few chapters ago, if you reread, you'll see that her head was caved in. She actually hit a wall and rebounded off of it. That hit crushed the optic relay to her left optic and damaged her memory cortex. Because of this damage, her processor deleted some memory files that were classified as being "too damaged." Some have no time stamps, which means the processor simply ignores them, while others are fragmented, meaning her processor is working to fix them. Some of them are missing pieces, and her processor is scrambling to piece them together with other memories. At the moment, her processor is simply working at reorganizing the memories that lost the time stamp. I'll go more in depth in the next chapter, though. :)

**Cairistona: **Ya know, when I went back to reread this, I noticed the same thing? The funny part is that at the beginning of TaCO, I said it wasn't going to be a main story and people shouldn't expect frequent updates. I'm telling you, the ones I think will be short are always long, and the ones I plan out always end up short. LOL!

Yeah. I'm still trying to figure Sunny out. As I'm sure you saw, this is the turning point chapter for them. They're about to start building a reputation for themselves. Oh, what fun I shall have!

Heh, looking into Megatron's mind isn't exactly easy, but I try. His logic's pretty twisted right now, but it's about to straighten out… Maybe. ;)

I love how many people love Blackout! I need to have a scene with him so y'all all see what a mean fragger he really is. I've cute-ified him too much. Time to show his true colors! *evil smile*

I know, right! I had _so_ much fun writing out the Nova/Megatron interaction! I can't wait to start writing the next chapter! X3

You know, that's why I love writing Jazz as Quickstrike (His Decepticon alias). Even as a Decepticon, he's so charismatic that he can get the other Decepticons to do his work for him. Tell ya what, though… If Jazz made his own army to take over the world… I would totally join. Jazz for Prime! X3 *heart*

**DemonMamoru:** Well thank ya :D It's always fabulous to have a new fan, and I hope I can keep ya entertained! ;)

**KeepingThemAtBay: **You, my friend, helped me finish this chapter. I had quite forgotten I was even supposed to be doing this, and your review came in, and I was like, "Oh, geez! I should probably update that!" So thank you for that. :)

I'm very glad the story appeals to you, and I'm glad you enjoy all the characters. It's always hardest to make the canons, so I'm glad to know that I'm doing a good job. I hope to keep your attention, and I hope you enjoy the new update. :D

* * *

*"Nail" is a derogatory slang word for a neutral. I mean, think about it… On Cybertron, a nail would be useless. It can't go through a metal wall without bending, and if you _can_ get it to punch through, it's gonna be impossible to get back out without breaking it, so you can't reuse it. A neutral can't fight or defend themselves (in theory), and if you _did_ force them into the army, they would die on the first battle field. Hence… a neutral is a nail.

So... how many tears this chapter? I know a cloud of gloom hovered over me as I edited and reread. -_- Sad day. Well, next chapter should be a bit happier, or there won't be as much depression, at least. :) I'll try to have it up before next weekend. :D

Review!


	12. Chapter 12

1) For this chapter, remember that most minibots were of the servant caste. They worked did manual labor because they were built to fit into small places and lift heavy stuff. Thus, they naturally joined with Megatron when he wanted to get rid of the caste system.

2) Yes, I know Megatron is being hypocritical in this chapter. He's got a few screws loose at the moment because he has a psychotic dead guy in his brain. Bear with me.

3) I had a lot of readers send me PMs expressing their concern for the T rating of this fic. Let me make this clear to everyone. I do not write lemons, and I will not subject my characters to rape. I know people who have been raped, and it is not something I feel should be used on a site like this to garner drama and angst. If you wanna get drama and angst, I think one should be creative and avoid this tactic. I actually gave a long rant on this in my "Things That Make Lunar MIst HIt the Back Button" blurb on my profile. Number six or seven, I believe. *nod nod* So yeah.

4) You may thank Sarah for the speed of this chapter. I have been spending a lot of time with her for cheerleading (I did a singleman with my little sis. It was awesome). Anywho, she went to cheer camp and called me while she was away. She was having trouble sleeping in the new bed, so she asked me to tell her about what happened to Nova after she was captured. Through that, she helped me finish this chapter. So thank the chick at cheer camp. :)

5) I've been building on my caste system (Trying to perfect it at the moment), and I got bored, so I checked out what caste I, personally, would be in. Seeing as my dad's an engineer, and my mom's a public servant, I would be a blue-sight. O.O I could totally marry a rich bot! ratchet, come marry me!

6)I just realized the acronym for this fic is GaGS...

* * *

Chapter 12

6,384 words

* * *

"This attack may have been successful, but the next ones will be nowhere _near_ as easily accomplished. We will need to plan our next steps carefully as the Autobots are likely to strongly watch our every movement."

Quiet murmurs rose amongst the Decepticon officers in the wake of Megatron's statement. This was expected, if they were perfectly honest. The last attack had been the point of no return, a statement of sorts to the Autobot army and their noble leader. In razing Praxus to the ground, the Decepticons had stated that they could and would destroy all who stood in their way, and by attacking the Youth Sector in Valvolux, they had illustrated that not even sparklings and femmes were safe from their fury and might. This was a stepping stone, the push they had needed to kickstart their war. The attack on Iacon had been nothing when compared to their latest acts, and the Decepticon army celebrated their victory, for they had defeated more than just a puny city. They had killed a set of traditions that would have opposed them.

They were one step closer to winning their war.

"Lord Megatron, if I may be so bold as to ask, what will we do when the Autobots decide to attack us in retaliation for this massacre?" the Vosonian prince, Starscream questioned. Megatron hummed in response before speaking.

"A good question, Starscream. At the moment, Optimus Prime does not have the strength to stand up to us. His forces are few, and the few trained soldiers he has are all devastated by this… tragedy. In addition to that, Optimus will likely focus his energies on moving all femmes and sparklings to safe havens, which we will find and likewise destroy."

"Hold up a klik. You wanna destroy all the Youth Sectors?" the minibot commander questioned with a frown. Megatron turned his crimson gaze to the short red bot.

"Ah, Cliffjumper. I forget that you were not present during the last attack. Yes, I mean to destroy them. In fact, I mean to go a step further and eliminate any femme and sparkling I can." The minibot gaped at Megatron in open horror, as did many others. Bonded mechs shuffled a bit in place at the implications of such a statement, each eager to question about their mates' fate in the Decepticon army.

"You would destroy our means of replenishing the race?" Cliffjumper asked with no small amount of surprise. "And you would kill innocent sparklings?"

"Do not see it as killing sparklings, minibot. Rather, you should view it as it is: the killing of future Autobot soldiers. We must face this fact: femmes will side with the faction that will promise them security without compensation. The Decepticons cannot afford to cater to the weak when we are fighting such an enemy as Optimus Prime. Because of this, femmes will likely run to the Autobots for protection, meaning any sparkling they spark will be raised in that army. We cannot chance the Autobots gaining this many soldiers, and we ourselves cannot offer that much energon to the femmes and sparklings we would be forced to protect. Therefore, we will eliminate the creatures altogether."

"But the future of our race—"

"Is secured by the Allspark, which can create more femmes once the war has been won," Megatron interrupted, glaring at Cliffjumper for interrupting him.

"And our mates?" a green miner by the designation of Tripwire asked.

"We all must make sacrifices during a war. Losing a berth partner will be such a sacrifice."

Silence filled the room for a few kliks before murmurs broke out amongst the officers. It was unheard of, and most in the room viewed it as an act of horror. Killing every femme and sparkling on Cybertron? Sure, they had killed one building-full of femme and sparklings, but to destroy every last one? What if something happened to the Allspark? What if they did not win?

What would happen to the bonded mechs?

"Now that we have that straightened out, we will move on to the next order of business. The Fallen plans to transfer himself to his body very soon, and I will require a small team of medics to tend to his frame as he regains his strength. His frame is currently aboard the _Nemesis_, which is still docked. When we return to headquarters, I will transfer his presence back into his own body. As it is, he is dormant in my mind, gathering his strength for the transfer."

"My liege, is it wise to allow his continued existence? It is well-known that Megatronous Prime was a power hungry mech. Is it wise to allow such a treacherous creature to grow to his full strength?" Starscream questioned with a frown. Megatron turned his optics to his Second in Command and gave him an irritated glare.

"Starscream, you speak of something you know nothing about. Rumors and stories are often exaggerated. You will cease your blathering if you wish to retain your post. Am I understood?" Starscream glared at the Decepticon leader.

"Yes, my liege," Starscream responded with a growl. Megatron nodded curtly before returning his attention to the rest of the gathered officers.

"In two cycles, we move to attack Protihex. They will not be well-protected, and with any luck, we will be able to gain some medics for our ranks. The Constructicons, while medically adept, will not suffice for the entire army. Shockwave and Soundwave have already left to recruit the lower castes in this hemisphere to our cause. With their help, we will end this war swiftly and victoriously."

"And what of the femme we captured?" The question was asked by a military mech by the designation Ironfist questioned. Megatron turned his gaze to the mech, his red optics holding a strange light.

"She is the femme creation of Senator Traachon. I have had previous dealings with her, and she will be kept here until further notice. No mech is to approach her unless he has my permission. From this moment forward, let it be known that Novashine belongs to _me_." Ironfist didn't look satisfied by this answer, but he backed down, nonetheless. Like the minibots, he had not been involved with the last two massacres, and he planned to take his small force of bots away from this madmech. He may be loyal to his military leader, but his loyalty to his femme was far stronger.

"Yes, sir," he said evenly, hoping that his traitorous thoughts were hidden well enough. Evidently, they were because Megatron gave that curt nod again before turning his attention back to the group as a whole.

"We will begin planning next cycle once I have heard back from our two recruiters. Dismissed."

With that said, the officers emptied the room, each headed somewhere different. Ironfist met Cliffjumper's optics briefly as they exited the room before they both went their separate ways: Cliffjumper to his group of minibots and Ironfist to his squad of military mechs. Though neither said anything, they both had the same thing on their mind: they had to get out, and they needed to get out _fast_. The Autobots needed to know Megatron's plans, and there was no time to waste.

* * *

"And with a mighty bellow, Primus brought his sword down on Unicron's spark, allowing his power to flow through his weapon. Unicron gave a fierce cry of anger and pain, humiliated and enraged by his brother's success. His optics slowly dimmed before shutting down completely, and Primus pulled out his sword and returned it to his subspace as he watched his brother's body float away to a universe unknown."

Five mechlings let out identical cheers of joy, the four eldest rising to their pedes and jumping on the large berth as they celebrated Primus's victory as if it were their own. Novashine chuckled at their antics and smiled at them as they slowly calmed down. Silverbolt was the first to address her.

"But, Danni, what happened to Primus?" he asked, wide optics turning back to her. Novashine hummed lightly as she allowed her voice to take on a mystical tone.

"Nobot really knows. Some say he sacrificed himself to keep the Originals alive. Some say he transformed himself into the Allspark. Some even say he transformed into Cybertron itself." At this last statement, the four elder mechlings gasped; Fireflight was not quite sure what Primus being Cybertron meant. For dramatic effect, though, Novashine continued that last thought just a little bit more. "In fact, some mechs say that if you travel down deep enough, you can find Primus's spark."

"Cool!" Airraid cheered, looking like he was already planning a trip there. The femme gave him an amused smile.

"Perhaps that is the next adventure you five can take. After the trip to visit the Original Thirteen, of course," she stated, easily encouraging their ever-active imagination.

"Let's go!" Slingshot cried dramatically. Novashine laughed at his vigor, watching them carefully as they climbed down from the berth, Silverbolt helping his little brothers without complaint.

"Stay in my sight," Novashine ordered, knowing from experience that none of them would dare disobey.

"Come on, mechs! We gotta find Alpha Trion and report for duty to fight Unicron!" Skydive said as he pointed in a random direction. Without needing any further encouragement, the five mechs began their new imaginary adventure. As she watched the mechlings, Novashine couldn't help but feel a bit irritated by her injuries. It was times like these when she enjoyed joining in the fun and fueling the imaginative juices the little mechs had, but her knee injury left her completely incapacitated. She was about to call out a correction to the adventure plot (because Alpha Trion was _not_ the wielder of the Forge of Solus Prime, and said Forge was _not_ a weapon), but her attention was forcibly ripped away by the sound of the door opening.

"He brought a femme _and_ sparklings? How_ charming."_ This was said by the mech that was leading the way into the room. The answer from the second mech was a scoff, but Nova wasn't sure if he was scoffing at the mechlings' presence or at the red mech's snobby statement. Nevertheless, Novashine tensed up, preparing to defend her younglings.

"_Relax_, femme. I don't plan on inciting Lord Megatron's wrath by hurting his little pets," the red mech continued as he approached the berth she was settled on. He was a handsome mech; there was no mistaking that. His red paintjob shined in a way that Sideswipe could only match if he started obsessing over it like Sunstreaker did, and it was obvious that there had been considerable planning put into his frame while it was being built. In honesty, if he stood next to Sunstreaker, Novashine wouldn't be able to decide who looked better.

"I'm not a pet," she responded, feeling her irritation rise at that title. The red mech rolled his equally crimson optics.

"Let's not get into a fight of semantics. My designation is Knockout, and this annoying fragger is Hook."

"Frag it, mech! Insult me again, and I'll make sure you are covered with scratches next cycle," the larger mech hissed as he stepped forward. "Good joor, Novashine. Lord Megatron has ordered us to repair your frame as best we can. At the moment, we are running rather low on supplies, but rest assured that you will be taken care of."

Novashine stared at the chartreuse and black mech, not quite sure what to make of him. She trusted neither of them, something that was brought on by the pointed insignia that both sported, yet she knew she had no chance in defending herself against them, should they attack. She frowned at them as they approached her, not sure what to do, and she jolted a bit when Hook pulled out a handheld scanner.

"I understand your fears, but I would suggest you remain calm while we work on you. Lord Megatron has already commanded that you be in no way injured or harmed," Hook stated as he stepped up to the berth and onlined the scanner he held. Novashine frowned at his words.

"I don't understand," she stated. Knockout shrugged as he moved to stand beside Hook so he could peer over his shoulder at the readouts on the scanner.

"Neither do we. Personally, I just follow orders. It keeps me from receiving blame for the faults of other bots," he said loftily. Novashine hummed thoughtfully as she glanced over at her mechlings. Silverbolt and Skydive had herded the younger ones to the back of the room, just as she had instructed them to do before telling them the story of Primus and Unicron. She frowned at the hateful glares the young mechs sent the two medics, but she made no move to correct them verbally. She preferred to keep the Decepticons' attention off her youngsters, even if it meant subjecting herself to torture and pain.

"You know," Hook began, "it's strange for flyer younglings to bond with grounder creators." Novashine's optics moved to his at this casual statement.

"We didn't have any flyer frame caretakers," she stated with narrowed optics. "I guess that worked in their favor, though, didn't it?" she added with no small amount of cynicism.

"I suppose so," Hook responded absently as he looked over the readout on the scanner's screen. "I don't know who did your repairs, but they did an _atrocious_ job. Knockout, look at this misalignment on her knee joint." Knockout leaned over his shoulder to look at the screen and made a noise of disgust. Novashine's optics narrowed behind her visor at the insult to Patch-up's work. He hadn't done too good a job, but he had done the best he could do in the position and circumstances he was forced to deal with. She was about to say as much when the medics continued their conversation as if she weren't even there.

"Disgraceful," Knockout agreed with a grimace. "We'll have to completely replace that joint."

"I concur. We will have to surgically replace her broken strut in this arm," Hook noted, "and I would suggest replacing her elbow joints to make them a bit stronger."

"Yes, the Iacon uppercrust preferred these weak joints, didn't they?" Knockout mused as he glanced at Novashine, who was still frowning up at them, not quite sure what to make of this turn of events. "Have no fear, sweetspark. You're in the _very_ capable hands of Knockout. You'll come out of this looking far better than you do now," the red mech said to her in a haughty voice.

"Now, wait a klik! I don't even know what you two were talking about! You can't just shut me down and mess around with my frame!" Novashine protested as she began to sit up. Knockout rolled his crimson orbs as he pushed her back down into a laying position.

"We're _medics_, femme. We plan on fixing what some other medic apparently thought passed as repairs," Knockout stated.

"And I wish to upgrade some of your joints. If you wish to survive amongst the Decepticons, you will need a bit more power behind your punch," Hook added.

"You'd have to take me offline for that," Novashine pointed out in a hard voice. Knockout scoffed.

"Afraid we'll have our wicked way with you?" Knockout questioned in a seductive voice, leaning in close to Nova's face and angling his torso over hers as he spoke.

"What does that mean?" Airraid whispered loudly to his eldest brother, only to be shushed firmly. Still, the tension in the room lightened, if only a little, as Knockout snorted in humor at the little mech's question. The red medic straightened again and plucked the scanner out of an unsuspecting Hook's servos, pacing around the head of the berth as he read over the readout aloud.

"Your optic relay was crushed, but there's nothing we can do about that right now. We aren't very well-stocked at this base, so you'll have to make due. Luckily for you, you have that visor installed," Knockout stated as he made a vague gesture toward her helm. He paused by her right arm and studied the sling that held it to her torso with open irritation.

"This… Apparently, your medic didn't even _try_ on this, which, in the long run, is probably better for _you_." He took a closer look at the elbow where Nova's arm had previously been severed at and made a sound of disgust. "Look at this, Hook! They welded the arm back on without a joint!" Hook grimaced at this as he rounded the berth to take a better look. To his horror, he found that this was true.

"This is an insult to the medical caste!" he seethed. "Hideous chop job."

"We'll have to sever _that_ completely," Knockout claimed as he pointed to a spot on her elbow.

"You're going to _what?_" Novashine questioned as she tried to crane her helm up to see where he was pointing. Knockout sighed in exasperation as he placed a clawed hand on her helm and pushed it back down into a laying position.

"Would you_ please_ stay still? This is for your own good," he stated flatly.

"Says the mech joking about having his way with me!" Nova snapped back. She was about to rail about the unprofessional attitudes of the Decepticon medics when she felt a tell-tale tugging in her spark, which distracted her from the two mechs. Her optics flicked over to the door, and her helm followed the movement. Knockout and Hook frowned as they followed her gaze, and a klik later, the door opened to reveal the huge, intimidating form of High Lord Megatron.

Megatron took in the scene in his quarters quickly and with military precision. His CMO, Hook, and his top surgeon, Knockout, were standing beside the berth, and though they looked at him now, Megatron could tell by the scanner in Knockout's hand that they had been following his orders in checking up on his newly acquired sparkmate. In the far corner of the room, near the door that led to his personal office, five young flyer frame mechlings huddled together. The one that appeared to be the oldest was crouched in front of the other four protectively, and the second eldest sat with the youngest three cuddled into his sides and lap.

Then in the very center of the room, lying tensely on his berth was the white and purple femme that stirred his spark so. She had been his means to power and one of the main reasons that he waged this war. Now, after being lost for a few orns, she was finally back in his possession. Her visor covered her optics, but her helm was turned in his direction, proving that he was currently the center of her attention. He didn't hide his smirk as he strode into the room.

"Report," he ordered evenly as he moved to stand at the head of the berth.

"Well, Lord Megatron, putting it simply, your pet is slagged up," Knockout stated before Hook could open his mouth. "Misaligned joints, incorrectly wired pain receptors. Frag, they even welded her arm together without a joint." Megatron frowned at this news.

"And your prognosis?" he prompted. Knockout grimaced a bit as he looked back at his medical officer. Hook sighed as he turned his gaze back on Novashine.

"Honestly, we need to strip out her elbow joint here and her knee joint here. We will have to completely sever this arm here, and we will have to rewire it completely," Hook explained as he pointed out the improperly repaired areas. "We have to take her pain grid offline and completely rewire to make sure she stops receiving phantom pain from the malfunctioning receptors."

"And her optics?" At this, Hook and Knockout exchanged uneasy looks.

"At the moment, there is nothing we can do about her optic relay. We don't have any replacements at this base," Hook stated.

"However, we _are_ fully stocked at the base in Stanix. We can send for the replacement part or we can wait to receive our next shipment of supplies," Knockout added quickly.

"Or you could, you know, _let me go_?" Novashine interjected with a scowl. The three mechs glanced down at her, each holding an expression of light amusement.

"If we let you go, sweetspark, you'd be _dead_ before you reached the border," Knockout stated. "Just lay down and mute your vocalizer while the _adults_ talk."

Novashine huffed irately. How dare they! It was _her _slagging _body_ they were talking about! Once again, she wished that the twins or Ratchet were here to save her. Ratchet would berate these medics for their insensitivity, and the twins would hold her hands and promise to keep her safe. Her spark clenched sadly at the fact that they still had not come for her yet. Did they know she was here? Did they even care? Surely they had gone to the Youth Sector. Had they not noticed the various items in her room?

"Very well. Prepare the medbay for her arrival, and comm me when you are ready." Megatron's voice pulled her from her reverie, and Novashine glanced up just in time to see the two medics leave the room. Megatron remained by her side as the medics left, and no words were passed between the femme and the warlord until the door shut and locked behind the two mechs.

"You are upset," Megatron noted. "Are you not happy to have survived?"

"What is life without friends? You have murdered all of mine," Novashine replied.

"Nonsense. I have yet to kill those accursed twin gladiators you hold in such high esteem, and I have yet to kill that politician, though not from lack of trying."

"He's not a senator anymore; he's a medic," Novashine said primly, though she knew that this fact didn't really pertain to the argument.

"His position in the Autobot army is hardly of any import—"

"Oh, look at you, Megatron! Such fancy words and pompous statements," Novashine jeered hatefully. Megatron smirked at her.

"You would know, wouldn't you? After all, you taught me such things." Novashine's optics shot up to meet with Megatron's at that statement, and Megatron's smirk grew into a darkly amused grin at her silence. "Ah, you don't remember, do you? Let us see if we can rejuvenate that memory."

Without waiting for a reply, Megatron rounded the berth and moved toward the back of the room with long, confident strides. The mechlings skittered back into a corner as he neared the back wall, but he only gave them a glance in askance before sending a wireless signal to the door located on the back wall. The door _hissed_ open, and Megatron stepped into his personal office. In every major base, there was an office that no other mech aside from Megatron was allowed to enter. The room held a single desk, and in the top drawer of that desk were three datapads. His personal office in Kolkular, and eventually Darkmount once they moved bases, housed three shelves that stood side-by-side. These shelves, unlike the ones in the berthroom that held historical texts and tactical datas, held datas of import to him. The last data Novashine ever had him read to her would be on that shelf – both in Iaconian and Kaonian. A photocube with photostills of Novashine taken from his memory files would be on one of those shelves. At these small bases, though, such keepsakes were dangerous to him, so he kept them at Kolkular, where they would be safe behind locked doors and threats of dismemberment.

"Perhaps these will jog your memory," Megatron stated as he exited the room with one of the three datapads that had been in the desk. The door closed and locked behind him as he made his way back to the berth. Novashine looked confused at the sight of the datapad, but Megatron was not deterred. She _would _remember him.

"I don't understand," Nova admitted as Megatron came to a stop before her. "Why do you have a sparkling's data in your office?" Megatron chuckled, a sound that still seemed ominous coming from him.

"Of course, you do not recognize it. I have the original one you gave me in Kolkular," Megatron responded. Novashine frowned.

"Why would I give you a sparkling's data?" she asked flatly. She was beginning to wonder if this was the great Megatron's idea of a joke. Was he making fun of her or something?

"Come now, think hard. I was surprised when you handed me this for our first lesson. You, a tiny little blue-sight femme, expected me, a well-known and established gladiator, to read a _sparkling's data_ aloud."

"_I brought something for you. Surprise." Novashine dropped the data onto Megatron's lap, and the gray mech immediately picked it up to see what his new teacher had brought him to read._

"_This is a sparkling's data!" Megatron exclaimed with no small amount of disgust. Novashine grinned down at him as she stood over the chair he was seated in._

"_Yup. Everybot's gotta start somewhere, and your starting point will be with _TheCybercat'sMisadventure."_ Megatron frowned as he activated the data, wanting above all to prove that he could read datas that held more value than this child's book, but his optics darkened when he saw that the three-glyph words that filled the page were already difficult to decipher. _

"_Hey," Novashine said gently when she saw the troubled look on the gladiator's faceplates. "You'll get there. We'll take sparkling steps, and before you know it, you'll be arguing in the senate with the best of them." _

"_Of course," Megatron responded quickly, schooling his features to hide his anxiety. The compassionate look on the elite femme's faceplates was already grating at his circuits. He did not need her pity; he only needed her knowledge. Unable to think of a better way to distract her, Megatron wrapped his free arm around her waist and abruptly pulled her into his lap._

"_What the frag!" Novashine yelped as she sprawled ungracefully on Megatron's legs, having to grab his shoulders to keep from tipping over the side of the chair. Megatron laughed at her predicament, working to hide just how good she felt in his arms. _

"_It's hardly practical for you to stand over my shoulder as you teach me," he purred._

"_Megatron, we went over this!" Novashine snapped, pointedly ignoring the way his engine purred at the sound of his name on her vocalizer. He was toying with her, and that pissed her off. "I'm not some sort of lap pet, and my legs aren't going to get tired if I stand behind you. Writing out glyphs is one thing because you might need an extra hand to guide you, but reading? You don't need me to be this close for that."_

_Megatron only smirked as he situated her in his lap so that her back pressed against his chest and his arms wrapped around her. He knew she would be able to feel his spark thrum through the contact, and he loved feeling her stiffen at the contact. Primus, it was so much fun to stir her up. "Indulge me just this once, sweetspark."_

She gasped when the feel of Megatron shaking her shoulders pulled her from the memory flux. She could vaguely hear her adopted creations calling out to her from the side of the berth opposite Megatron, but all her focus was on the ex-gladiator's worried faceplates. She stared at him for a few kliks as it the memory sank in. Already, she could feel her memory cortex going back over her damaged files, searching for spots that would benefit from this new batch of information, and she didn't like how well the process seemed to be working. Primus, her next recharge was going to be horrible, especially if she was as… _involved_ with Megatron as she was beginning to think she was.

"What did you _do_ to me?" she asked, looking as horrified as she felt. Suddenly, she realized that she didn't want these memories anymore. She didn't want to _know_ how Megatron had influenced her life, and she _especially_ didn't want to know how _she_ influenced _his_. All her fragmented and scrambled memory files were finally beginning to repair themselves, and the results were beginning to terrify her.

"These are things you must remember, Novashine. You belong to me, femme, and I will ensure you have the memories to understand that." Novashine's optics narrowed at that statement.

"I _belong _to no one," Novashine asserted.

"_Feel the pull, femme! We are made for each other!"_

"_You're hurting me!"_

"_You belong to me!"_

"_Let me go!"_

_Pain. Hurt. Betrayal._

"Novashine!" The femme blinked as she was pulled from another flux. She needed to get away from him. She needed to get free and escape him before he completely shattered what was _left_ of her peaceful little world.

"That's enough. I will take you to the medbay now. I do not know what your ailment is, and I do not wish to chance your injuries," Megatron stated as he pulled her into his arms. The movement caused pain to wash through her body, starting from her elbows and knees and moving inward. Novashine shrieked in pain, but leaned against his strong chestplates without struggling. She was in too much pain to struggle.

"Mechlings—" she protested, not wanting her mechs to be alone in this base. That was the main reason she didn't want to be taken offline. She had just seen countless sparklings and younglings killed at the hands of these mechs. She didn't want that to happen to her little winglets.

"Your sparklings will be in the care of Blackout. You recall your early orns with him, correct? You can trust him to keep them safe," Megatron stated before hitching her a little higher in his arms, accidentally—or perhaps it _was_ intentional—banging her knee on his arm. Agony rushed through her frame, and her processor found the quickest way to preserve itself: it shut down. Some part of her fought the impending darkness, not wanting to deal with the memory fluxes that happened when the processor did internal repairs during recharge, but she didn't get the chance to fight back at it. A red light flashed behind her optics, warning her of the impending stasis lock only a klik before her body completely shut down.

* * *

It was silent in Temporary Autobot Base Alpha-3. Mechs murmured conversations quietly in the rec room and shuffled silently to their destinations. In honesty, one couldn't point out just _one_ reason behind this silence, for it was a nauseating mix of horrifying past events and current circumstances that caused the self-imposed hush.

For one, Praxus, a city-state of neutrality and traditions, had been completely razed to the ground, leaving behind one survivor: a little mechling who refused to talk, touch, or look at anyone aside from the Praxian tactician and Executive Officer, Prowl. He was a pitiful little thing, moving no farther than an arm's length away from Prowl's leg and clinging to said leg whenever somebot else approached him for any reason. Little door-wings stayed safely tucked down by his back, as if he feared somebot was going to grab at them at any given time. Prowl, to the immense surprise of every other bot in the base, took the little bot's clinginess in stride, offering the mechling reassurances and gentle touches when he was spooked, something that tended to happen a lot. The other mechs worked hard to keep the youngster calm, mainly because he was believed to be the last sparkling alive from Praxus, Valvolux, and Dizeon.

Which led to the next big event. The destruction of the Valvoluxan Youth Sectors was perhaps the most devastating event in the last thousand vorns, though such a title could be arguable when compared to the Praxian Massacre. Perhaps the thing that tipped the scale was having to search through the bodies, identify sparklings and femmes, and then send out letters to the family units that had sent their femmes and sparklings to that Sector in hopes of keeping them out of the war. Perhaps it was the knowledge that Megatron no longer cared who his target was. He would kill whoever he wished to kill, and he needed no motive to do so.

Perhaps the major game changer was the captured femme. None of Autobot soldiers really knew the details on this, only rumors—and _what_ _rumors_! It had been passed around that the kidnapped femme had been having an affair with the special ops bot, Jazz, who seemed to know her for some reason. The mech now wore a feminine energon necklace around his neck, and it was said that this necklace belonged to his femme, who was captured by Megatron, and would be returned to her once she was saved. Others said that this femme was a past flame of Optimus Prime himself, who had refused to rescue her orns ago in the medbay when asked by the CMO, Ratchet. Some claimed that Ratchet had an affair with her, but these rumors were shot down when Moonracer and Ratchet announced that they were sparkmated. Still, Ratchet had nearly destroyed his office when word of the femme's capture had reached his audios.

Then there were the twins. Ex-gladiators that served as the most violent—and most efficient—frontliners the Autobots had. They had gone on a rampage at the news, nearly destroying the target range before Ironhide and Optimus Prime forcibly offlined their weapons and escorted them to the brig. Nobot really knew what the connection was between the twins and this unnamed femme, but the gossip mill quickly came up with one. It was obvious that the twins had feelings for this femme, as evidenced by the way they yelled at Optimus when he told them in Praxus that he needed to finish searching for survivors before sending out any sort of rescue missions. They hadn't calmed down since then. Sunstreaker was on a hair-trigger, and he wouldn't hesitate to hurt, or even maim, bots that made him angry. He was usually found in his room painting or in the training room, mutilating holographic Decepticons. Sideswipe, in comparison, was always prowling about, either sulking in the rec room or lurking outside the medbay, much to the irritated dismay of Ratchet. Nobot really knew what the connection between Ratchet and the twins was, but—

"Hey!" The two mechs looked up at the golden mech who had interrupted their gossip. Icy blue optics flashed at them. "Ratchet was an acquaintance. Stop spreading rumors about me or I'll show you a new definition of pain. Compute?" The two mechs nodded quickly in the face of the Autobot's most unstable warrior (unstable in their optics at least). Sunstreaker straightened as he glared down at them, a dark look that was compounded by the glare of his garnet twin who stood beside him. The two mechs muttered apologies before fleeing the scene, leaving their table conveniently empty for the twins, who wasted no time in seating themselves as they waited for the last member of their mini-meeting to arrive.

The rec room was filled at the moment, something that actually calmed the twins as they prepared for the meeting. None of the other bots in the room knew what would transpire, and the rec room being so full would ensure that other bots would not be listening in, all too busy with their own conversations. After all, having a meeting over classified information with bots that weren't cleared was frowned upon by the Autobot army. However, Jazz had felt that the twins deserved to know the happenings of the femme they had once called their charge.

"'Ey, mah mechs. Ready t' get this show on the road?" Jazz asked cheerfully as he suddenly appeared through the crowd and moved toward their table. Sunstreaker and Sideswipe nodded as Jazz sat down, and the next klik, the room suddenly filled with chatter as the late-shift mechs suddenly arrived in the rec room to refuel and "take a load off." Jazz took a seat in the chair that sat perpendicular to the twins and hoped silently that the twins' dark aura would keep bots from trying to sit in the chair across from him.

"What have you got for us?" Sideswipe asked, not wanting to waste time with pleasantries. Jazz glanced around once before leaning forward and retelling everything that had happened in the classified special ops meeting that he had just left.

"Right now, we know tha' Megatron has Novashine in one of 'is nearby bases. The biggest problem we're facing is knowin' which one to send the rescue team to."

"So, what, are we just gonna _leave _her to—"

"No, Sunstreaker, we ain't. Ever since the attack on Praxus and Valvolux, we've had an influx of recruits. Megatron torqued off _a lot_ of bots, and now we have a lot more benefactors willing to support our war effort."

"So we get more energon and some new energon. Prob'ly the only positive from this fraggin' attack," Sideswipe mumbled, but he was ignored as Jazz continued his explanation.

"We finally got the recruits from the special ops class in the Academy, and we can now afford to send out some saboteurs and spies," Jazz stated quietly, a look of concern and determination on his face. "The plan is to send out a mech to each known D'cepticon base. It'll take a bit of time, 'cuz we don't want the 'Cons to know what we're up to, but the first mech to see Novashine will send back a message, and Prime'll be able to send out the rescue team."

"And they'll know it's her…?" Sideswipe asked slowly. Jazz nodded.

"Yeah. I'mma send 'round a picture of 'er. We're gonna find 'er," Jazz assured them. The twins nodded, though they didn't look very reassured. Jazz sighed a bit at this before rising to his pedes. He had a mission to prepare for. As for the twins… well, all they could do is wait.

* * *

**Vampireyautja: **Yeah. I really wanted the familiar characters to live for now. That's why all the killed femmes and sparklings were OCs. I freaking bawled the whole time I wrote that chapter because I had fallen in love with every frickin character I made. Oh, Patch-up! Why did you have to die?! T^T As for your other question, yes, the seekers will be making an appearance, Starscream more than the others. In all my 'verses, Screamer is a scientifically-inclined Vosonian prince. I'm actually about to publish this huge fic on my 'verse Seekers called _Seekers: Cute, Quirky, and Territorial. _It will be glorious. I'm having tons of fun writing it. :D

**HanamiKaze: ***shrug* Not just a trick for writing. It's a trick for life. Put everything you have into the task you wish to accomplish, and not only will it turn out better, but you'll be more satisfied once you're done. I used to do that with my workout. Sprint the last stretch, no matter how exhausted you are, and you'll feel like you accomplished the most difficult task. ^-^

And don't worry. Novashine doesn't see herself as a pet, either, and she's gonna make sure Megatron knows his place ;)

**Angel897: **Lol. I don't think I _can_ do tragic endings. It's not possible. I'm too fluff-prone. ^^;

**PepperCornPie: **Don't worry; I cried when I wrote it. It's just such a heart-breaking chapter. :( As for Blackout, I'm not sure what Nova's end emotions will be towards him. I'm still trying to decide… Then again, they'll probably write themselves, anyways…

**Miko873: **Lol. Yup. My hardcore fic. X)

**Emajade32439: **I would have to say that Blackout is simply following his leader. He, like other military mechs, want to see the end of the caste system, and after killing so many people, you kinda get immune to it, I guess. I'm not escusing his actions, but I guess I'm kinda trying to work through the logic. Honestly, I don't understand how any of these bots would be willing to do this. :\ Evil doesn't compute with me. As for Novashine being Megatron's stabilizer… well, I can't give that away yet. ;3

**TheGhost129:** I know! Finally, right? XD

**KeepingThemAtBay: **I think I'm gonna keep them innocent. Silverbolt will likely be more traumatized, along with Skydive, but the three youngest don't really get what's going , Silverbolt and Skydive are more careful than the younger three when they finally join the war. :D

As for the switch with Jazz… I actually meant to put it a little earlier, but my thoughts are that his comm signature would be like his accent. When he's not depressed and totally broken down, he has an accent and his signature is "Super spy," but when he's completely blown away or serious, then he loses the accent and his signature is "Spec Ops." He expected the death at Praxus, but the Youth Sectors completely blew him away. I guess it was kinda his way of warning Prime that what he was about to send through the comm was very serious and very bad, ya know? :\

**Kurohane Ookami: **I sorryyy! If it makes you feel better, I cried while I wrote it… and edited it… and reread for mistakes and errors… Is sad chapter ;A; And we'll see just how it turns out… we shall see…

**Sunstreaker's Squishy: **Oh, Primus. Yeah, I don't take care of more than three kids at a time. Ever. I like to think I'm like Optimus Prime in that aspect: People think I have immeasurable patience… I don't.

**TheWynndel: **I put my soul into that chapter. I really wanted the reader to feel like they were experiencing it for themselves. It was a very good chance to learn to stir my reader's emotions. I'm getting good at it. :)

**Chistarpax: ***Pats on back* It's okay, sweetspark. Just let it all out. T^T

**Icesong180: **:D I think this is the only review that's not depressed! :D I'm writing all these replies, and then BAM! Happy review! Thank you, thank you for the compliments, and I hope you enjoy the rest of the fic. :)

**Lovely Rain Dancer: **She was his unofficial daughter. :'( So sad. And yeah… I got super passionate while writing her little spiel. I got to throw around all my long words and fancy language, and it sounded natural coming from her mouth for some reason. *toothy grin* That's my favorite thing about having an upper-caste main character. ^-^

**AndromedaAI: ** I think it was worst for me, to be perfectly honest, and that's because all these bots that died? Well, I had a long list of OC names, just in case I needed an extra character in the fic… A lot of my OCs died, and each of them had a strange little trait. T^T Heartbreak.

Yeah. I think going through the bodies would be the worst. Walking through a city that was once the center of forward, yet traditional thinking, and seeing nothing but gray, lifeless bodies. No hope for survivors, and if a survivor was to be found, there was little chance he would survive the trip to Iacon for repairs. Simply depressing.

Meh. Novashine ain't gonna let Megatron push her around. Rest assured, I have plans for them. *evil grin*

**Leonixon: **Yeah. The twins are so protective. I do believe that, at this point, they are in love with her. At least, one of them is. This has made it rather difficult for me, because I love the twins so much more than I love Megatron, but this _is_ a Megatron/oc fic, so I can't let the twins have her. It is very disconcerting…

**Luna Uchiha666: **;D Yes, the next couple of chapters are definitely going to be interesting. I got a great line-up too! Megsy, Screamer, and Jazz, and soon-to-be-introduced *drumroll!* The Wreckers!

**Sky's Breaker: **Thank you very much! Glad ya like it. :)

**Cairistona: **Not gonna be much fluff for a while. :\ Still got some bridges to cross.

**Iceshadow911247: **Yeah… Optimus is kind of a force of nature, isn't he? Not getting around that one, nope. I was listening to depressing Superchic[k] songs while writing that one. Sad day, my friend. Sad day. ;A; And Patch-up's death scene made me bawl, too. He just wanted a daughter! DX

**Thebookfan09: **The fact that you reviewed brings joy enough. ^-^ Yeah, we tend to converse over these things, but on that same note, doesn't that just mean we're really good friends that can chat anywhere? ;) It's a good thing. :D

Eh heh, I dunno if emotionally injuring you is a good thing, but I'll take it as a compliment nonetheless.

I'll admit that I don't mind it as much now. I think the kids see me as more of an accomplice than a caregiver now. It's fun. :)

**CheerupSkitz: **0.0 Oh. My. Primus. *Fangirl squeal* Do you realize that your stories were the first Transformers fics I ever read?! Primus, that was forever ago. Are you gonna revamp them? Continue them? *Ish excited!*

**Mrs. Knockout: **Yeah, I trid to prepare y'all, at least a little bit. Sad turn of events, no?

**Guest: **So… mystery bot… Are you willing to give away your secret identity? 0.o But yeah… it took forever to update. But I'm back! This is good! :D

**Sweettea1: **I can't even count how many times I'll sift through my emails and suddenly see a fic update from a couple weeks prior.

I was trying a new detailing technique with the last chapter, and I'm very glad it apparently worked so well. I put my soul into the chapter, so that probably made it even more realistic and sad. :(

Eh heh. Yeah. I definitely tangled everybot up. Don't worry. Everything will work out in the end. Of course, the ride there may be kinda strange. X)

I know. I swear, Michael Bay is murdering every single one of my favorite fandoms. What's next? Live-action pokemon? =_= And I just recently became enamored with the TMNT. So new to the fandom before it gets quashed. T^T

I hear Michael Bay is putting a lot of Japanese people in TF4, too. Strange new fetish, you think? And I saw the new Optimus live action alt mode! It looks terrible! DX

* * *

I totally had fun writing Knockout. I'm frickin in love with him, especially after the last episode with him ("Frankly, I find it repulsive. The _idea _of you fleshies..._ interfacing._") Oh, Michael Bay, you should let the guy who wrote Prime write the movie (TMNT movie included), and you should shut up and let them control everything because you are an idiot who is slowly murdering all my favorite fandoms by putting Megan Fox in them and messing with their plotlines! Is anyone else steaming from the ears because of this idiot? Wonder who he's gonna kill in _this_ TF movie. *Pouts irritably in corner* I need a Jazz hug. Hmph.

Anywho. Rant over. Review, guys. I should have the PMs replied to tomorrow. :)

Ciao

~*Lunar Mist*~


	13. Chapter 13

1) My first comment is an apology. I am not putting my caste system on my profile for two reasons. 1-If it's on my profile, it's going to get copy&pasted to someone else's profile, and I don't want it getting around because -2- I plan on using it in the story I am writing, a legit story that I hope to publish. So... yeah.

2) I know FF didn't send out an alert for chapter 12, so if you don't know about the officer's meeting, go back a chapter and catch up. :)

3) Lastly... Memories! The first half of this chapter is going to confuse you because it jumps. Her processor is trying to repair her memories. for the most part, it's fairly easy to see when the scene abruptly changes, but still... Sorry for any confusion, but what can you do? It's a filler chapter. :)

* * *

Chapter 13

8,261 words

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_Novashine grinned as she chased the irritating red hellion down the streets of Kaon. His hoots, taunts, and laughs easily grabbed the attention of the military and servant caste bots that were milling around the streets, either socializing, shopping, or doing their jobs. She didn't miss the glares and disapproving looks sent their way—or more specifically, _her_ way—but she ignored them in favor of chasing down the adorable jerk that had stolen her subspace bag._

"_Sideswipe, get your aft back here!" she yelled._

"_Goody-goody femmes shouldn't use bad words!" Sideswipe shouted as he pivoted so that he could skate backwards. "It makes them sound so—" He abruptly braked, causing Novashine to yelp as she ran into him. He caught her easily and bent his helm forward so that he could whisper "naughty" in her audio receptor. Energon rushed to her cheek plating as she dared a look up at him. He was grinning like a cybercat that had stolen some energon._

"_I hate you sometimes," she said flatly. Sideswipe's grin widened._

"_Not as much as you love me, though!" he crowed as he suddenly scooped her up into his arms._

"_Sides!" Novashine snapped as he raced forward recklessly, causing the femme to call out warnings to bots that didn't see them coming._

"_Nova, chill! Enjoy yourself!" Sideswipe chirped as he slid around an elderly couple._

"_Sorry!" Novashine called back at them, manners getting the better of her as Sideswipe kept moving. The two purple-opticed bots only smiled at the retreating bots, remembering how they acted when they were young and in love. _

"_Don't be a pole in the sludge, Nove! You're getting a free ride to the Forge! Be happy!" Sideswipe said cheerfully as they approached the training entrance._

"_How can a person be happy when they're staring death in the—AH!" she cut herself off with a scream when Sideswipe turned a corner and smacked into a small group of gladiators, bowling them down and sending Novashine flying in the same motion. The femme acted quickly, accessing a barely-used battle computer to come up with a plan of action to keep herself from being _too_ seriously injured. Acting nearly on instinct, she curled her body forward as she fell, turning the fall into a roll that absorbed most of the momentum. She remained curled up as her body rolled helm over heels two more times before she stopped, flat on her back and disoriented. As she stared up at the lights above her, she realized that Sideswipe had thrown her into the fitness arena where gladiators kept up their strength when they weren't planning on battling in the lunar cycle's matches and that all the gladiators had stopped what they were doing to stare at her incredulously._

"_Bravo, Sideswipe. You broke Megatron's pet," Barricade finally announced from where he was lifting weights._

"_I'm not Megatron's pet!" Novashine snapped without moving. Barricade snorted at this and returned to his activity._

"_Fine. Bravo, Sideswipe. You broke _our_ pet," he amended with a smirk._

"_You know what, Barricade? Sometimes I hate you, too," Novashine announced as she worked to sit up. She was hit by a bout of vertigo and groaned as she dropped back into a laying position, not liking how the ceiling was spinning._

"_Equilibrium cortex must have overloaded. You ain't made for those kind of movements, Little Blue," Lowlife noted as he shoved Sideswipe and Dropout off him and rose to his pedes. "Watch where you're going next time, fragger."_

"_Virgin audios! No bad words around the femling!" Sideswipe crowed._

"_Frag you, Sideswipe!" Novashine snapped, causing the mechs around her to laugh, though she was fairly certain it was more at the fact that a blue-sight femme would use such language than at the sarcasm in the response._

_Novashine sighed as Megatron yanked her into his room and immediately pulled her to the desk. _

"_I have finished reading this datapad, and I need new material. What have you acquired for me?"_

"_Megatron, you need to slow down. How have you been doing on your oral reading?" Megatron growled at this. In honesty, he was doing terrible at it. He couldn't decide if it was pride or embarrassment that made him hate reading aloud. It was harder, to be perfectly honest, for him to form the words on his lips rather than in his processor. When reading to himself, he could finish the short, sparkling datas in less than a breem, but when he was forced to read them aloud, he stumbled over the words, often having to sound out the words three or four times slowly before figuring out what the blasted thing actually meant. He wasn't sure where the disconnect was in his processor between verbally and non-verbally reading the words. He was pulled from his frustrated thoughts when a small hand was placed on his shoulder._

"_Don't worry, Megatron—I can't do this!"_

"_Honestly, femme, if you don't learn at least _a little_ self-defense, you will be royally fragged when Blackout is not around," Megatron stated irately as he glared at the femme the stood before him in the sparring arena. She scowled at the large mech, not backing down at his raised voice. Neither noticed the crowd they were gathering—the other mechs in the arena had stopped what they were doing to stare at the spectacle, new-comers looking worried and confused while the seasoned warriors simply grinned at what was sure to be a good show._

"_Blackout's _always_ around! It's half impossible to sneak away from the brute! Do you have any fraggin idea how hard it is to come here every cycle?"_

"_No, but I'm certain you'll tell me," Megatron responded with a smirk. Novashine gave what the gladiators thought was a cute, pathetic growl, her feminine, elitist engine making more of a purring noise than the roaring snarl that the mechs around her could achieve, and she glared at Megatron rather ineffectively._

"_You know, femme, if you're trying to be intimidating, you're doing a rather poor job at it," the silver mech stated, his temper fading as he stared at his little pet._

"_Agh! I've had enough of this!" she cried out indignantly as she stomped her delicate pede in frustration. This, of course, only caused the mechs around her to laugh uproariously. "You know what? Frag you, guys!" she called out with a huff, which only made the laughter increase, and stomped out of the arena, followed by a chuckling Megatron._

**MEMORY FILE DAMAGED. OUTSIDE MEDICAL ASSISTANCE REQUIRED.**

_Novashine grinned as she glanced around the room, her gaze settling on the only familiar mech in there. Once she set optics on him, she began the long, arduous task of making her way to his side. It was times like these when the sparkling femme wondered if walking would ever be a good form of transportation, and this particular trek across the room was far more difficult thanks to the femmes and mechs loitering around. A "party" was what Danni had called it. Novashine preferred "room with lots of bots and legs."_

"_Nova," a femme voice sang out. Novashine paused in her walk and dropped to her hands and knees as she twisted her helm in an attempt to look back at the femme that was calling her name. The attempt was unnecessary, though, as the femme scooped the little one up into her arms. "What are you up to? Aren't you supposed to be in the nursery with Blackout?" Novashine gave her femme creator an open mouthed smile._

"'_Scaped! Blacky no see! I look Opi," the small femlet explained in her small, squeaky voice. Laughter was heard as one of Gemstone's close friends sidled up beside her._

"_I last heard this was a gathering for adults. I suppose little Novashine is our guest of honor?" she asked in a lightly teasing voice. _

"_Lilly!" Novashine squealed with excitement as she held her chubby arms out to the black and white medic. Lilium grinned as she lifted the sparkling into her arms, ever careful of their paintjobs. Novashine twittered happily at the elder femme. "Pretty, Lilly!"_

"_Well, thank you, sweetspark. I was wondering when you were going to make an appearance," Lilium stated. Gemstone chuckled at her friend. _

"_You encourage her too much, Lilium," Gemstone said, though her optics told of her amusement._

"_Hardly! She _needs_ a partner in crime," Lilium argued. Novashine didn't quite understand what this meant, so she decided to return to her previous objective: finding Opi. She spotted him easily from her new height in Lilium's arms, but to her dismay, she found that he had moved farther away to talk to one of the many politicians that had been invited to the upscale party._

"_Opi!" Novashine shouted, interrupting Lilium and Gemstone's conversation, even if the voice didn't carry over the room. The two femmes grinned at the femling, who was now pointing excitedly in the direction of her opiluk._

"_Nova, sweetspark, Opi is very busy. Maybe you—try too hard to be one of us," he stated with a small smirk on his face plates. Novashine scowled heavily as she turned to face him. _

"_Well, how else am I supposed to fit in?" she demanded._

_The hallway they were in was deserted at the moment as every gladiator was either training in the sparring arena, working out in the fitness arena, or enjoying their free time on the streets, so Sunstreaker did not have to worry about anybot listening in as he spoke. He gave a single sigh before he began. "Novashine," he began, pausing to glance to his right with a slightly pained expression before turning his gaze back to her. "Every cycle, the gladiators train to be the best. We train so that we can survive longer and hopefully _kill_ the ones we train with. We are brutal creatures, hardened by death and the killing of others like us. We are used, abused, or ignored by those in castes above us, and everybot that has heard of us fears in our presence." Sunstreaker paused to give Novashine a decidedly sad look. It was the most honest emotion he had ever shown her._

"_These mechs appreciate your presence because though you are above them, you treat them as equals and give them respect. You do not cower in their presence, and you are not afraid to fight back. You visit every gladiator after they fight to make sure the medic didn't skip them over, and you make sure every bot gets medical attention, even if he did not win a fight. They like you because you're… well, _you_. We're so harsh and used to having to fight everything, and it's nice to have a friend that you don't have to kill next fight… It's nice to have somebot to look after us, somebot that we know will be there the next cycle… Nova, you're—"_

_"—mine," Megatron snapped as he stepped forward. All attention turned to him, but his gaze was locked on Novashine. "How fortuitous that my little pet has returned to me." Novashine scowled at that statement and stepped out from behind Sunstreaker so that she could properly glare at the silver gladiator._

_"I most certainly am __not__ your__ pet__. I am not your __anything__. I do, however, wish to speak with you if you have a moment." Megatron studied her for a moment before nodding._

_"Come. Sideswipe and Sunstreaker will continue my battle with Barricade. I will be back in a breem or two, Taught," Megatron stated, addressing his trainer with the last sentence. Taught nodded before turning his attention to the twins._

_"Okay, you two miscreants, let's see what you've got." Novashine glanced over at the twins as they pulled identical sets of blades from their subspace and prepared themselves for battle. That was when Megatron put a hand on her lower back and started leading her away. She looked up at him and grimaced at the set expression on his face. This was going to be an interesting conversation…_

_She forced herself to ignore the warmth coming from the hand—no, claw—on her back. The arena was cold today for whatever reason, but she refused to complain. She knew the mechs in the buildings would be fine, seeing as they had much thicker armor on than she did. Her armor was thin, made for fashion and appearance rather than protection from the elements. It was rare for a femme of her caste to be out in these conditions, so it wasn't necessary to wear such things when she was at home._

_"Now, I know you did not come back simply to watch me spar, seeing as you left under rather negative circumstances. So what exactly __are __you here for?" Megatron questioned lowly as they walked down a hall away from the ring, effectively pulling Novashine from her thoughts._

_"Compensation," was her answer. Megatron raised an optic ridge at this._

_"Really? And just what does this compensation entail?" he asked with a small smirk. Novashine grimaced as she looked down, fighting the urge to fidget. She had no idea what it was about Megatron that made her so nervous, but she couldn't fight the fluttering in her stomach. Still, she forced her voice to remain level as she replied, "I am uncertain. I don't quite understand the… depth of the misdeed."_

_"I see," Megatron hummed as he led her down a hall filled with doors. She blinked when he stopped in front of the second door to the left and started typing in a code. "It is quite noble of you to return to repay such a misdeed, but I must ask what lengths you are willing to go to in order to repay this deed."_

_"Anything in reason. I am not a fool, Megatron," she responded with a scowl. Megatron grinned as the door opened, revealing a rather small room. A single berth sat against the far wall, and a desk and chair sat on the right wall with a large shelf standing parallel to them against the left wall. She turned her gaze from the room to give Megatron a deadpan look. "I know what you're thinking, and you're not going to get it. I am not a toy to be used."_

_"Oh really? I believe you give yourself too much credit, my dear," Megatron stated as he walked into the room, dragging Novashine in after him. The femme dug her heels in, suddenly scared of what she may have just gotten herself into._

_"You are __mine__," he said deeply, his voice a low purr. Novashine's spark flipped delightfully at the comment. Then he continued. "Accept no more suitors, and plan no more dates. You shall move with me and work under my command at the Defense Force Central."_

_"No." It was as simple as that. She wasn't going to do it. Megatron looked surprised, but that look quickly changed to one of fury._

_"Explain," he snarled, leaning in in an attempt to intimidate her. The movement only served to make her spark pull excitedly. 'His chest was so __close__ to hers!' her spark sang. She growled at him, though, refusing to let her feelings open her up to more pain._

_"I will not be treated like some servant caste pleasure doll or some indentured slave! I am not a toy, and I am __not__ a soldier. __Shame__ on you for expecting me to give up __everything__ I have because __you__ told me to!" she snapped. Megatron scowled at her._

_"I am the High Protector—"_

_"And __I__ am the daughter of a councilmech. We may be equal in caste, but castes do not matter to me!" she interrupted._

_"You are a femme!"_

_"And you are a mech! If you are trying to make a point, then I suggest you have it made before I __leave,"__ she snapped._

_"I am above you, and you __will__ submit!"_

_**::Well, mechs and femmes, onto our next story. You'll never guess who was spotted in Praxus today. That's right gentlebots, it was our own Liaison-turned-medic, Ratchet, and our own debutante diva, Novashine! The mech and femme were spotted getting pretty close in the docking lot, and sources says she spent the whole trip from Iacon to Praxus curled up in the mech's lap, and you can be sure that **__**he**__** wasn't complaining. After their exhausting trip, the two were seen walking toward the Praxian Market, and my reporter heard Ratchet asking some pretty invasive questions. In fact, here's a lovely picture of the two new lovebots!**_

_**-A picture of Novashine smiling warmly at Ratchet, who was smiling quite bashfully back down at her, flitted across her processor-**_

_**Does this mean that there will be a bonding ceremony soon? We cannot be certain. After all, High Lord Protectorate Megatron was spotted not breems later splitting up the dream couple. Our hero, Ratchet, was apparently called away on urgent business, and Novashine headed off in the direction of Praxus Main, but she didn't make it before Megatron trapped her against a wall, getting rather scandalously close. We're not too sure to make of this new development, but perhaps you can decide for yourself.**_

_**-A picture of Megatron and Novashine flashed across her processor. She was pressed firmly against the wall, and Megatron had his helm pressed tenderly to her own. The shot hid her tears, though.-**_

_**So, the gentlemech or the barbaric one? We're not sure which one to root for, but we'd love to hear your feedback on it! Call into our station for a chance to have your opinion featured on the air!::**_

_"Well, are you going to stand there staring or do your job?" the mech growled. The femme raised an optic ridge and gave the mech a sarcastic look._

_"I'm not quite sure. I'm partial to staying over here," she responded honestly. She really didn't want to go anywhere near tonight's victor. There was a reason she had hired an escort: to keep mechs this large away from her. Besides, she really didn't feel like putting up with a rude mech that thought she was a medic. The mech on the berth smirked in amusement._

_"I would have you thrown out for that, but then I would be forced to see to my own wounds, and I find that femme's hands are much more… gentle." The last word came out in a husky purr, but the femme ignored it as she approached the mech. She had dealt with mechs like this before. The aristocratic mechs that moved in her circles always thought that every femme alive should desire their company, and they often acted as this mech currently was._

_"Yeah, but that doesn't mean I am, does it? You might regret not kicking me out when you had the chance by the time I'm finished," the femme stated with a grin. The towering mech snorted._

_"We shall see," he claimed._

_"That we shall," she responded sarcastically. "Now lay back." The mech frowned as he obeyed, obviously expecting a different reaction from her. She didn't give him the satisfaction of seeing the fear that was coursing through her, though, as she opened the first aid box. Like every other noble, she had been taught primary first aid in her schooling, but she wasn't quite sure what she was supposed to do for a wound from an energon whip. She studied the wound carefully, barely resisting the urge to prod it with one of her digits. Well, it looked pretty straightforward… Just put a patch on, and his systems would do the rest. At least, she hoped that was right._

_"Do you know what you're doing, or are you completely incompetent?" Megatron questioned in a flat, bored voice. The femme scowled at him, though he was not looking at her, staring instead at the ceiling._

_"Get off my case, you rude slagger. I'm __here__ and doing something. That in itself is cause for joy," she hissed irritably._

_"My, my. Such harsh language from such a petite femme," Megatron rumbled as he lifted himself up on his elbows to gaze at the femme as she rummaged through the first aid box._

_"Yeah? Well, I learned from the best," she grumbled, thinking about how dreadful Blackout's language was. Now that she thought about it, her bodyguard was probably going to be rather miffed when she got back. Then she shrugged it off with a grimace. Blackout was loyal to a fault and wouldn't harm her. Lecture her until her audios offlined, but not harm her._

_"That was a fascinating display of emotions, medibot," Megatron noted, breaking into her thoughts. She shuttered her optics in surprise, then looked up from where she had been welding the patch._

_"Well, you see, some bots actually __have__ emotions, and we don't feel the need to beat down every mech and femme that comes their way," she replied snidely. Megatron growled lowly at that._

_"You overstep your bounds, femme," he snarled, optics brightened in his growing ire. The femme shrugged._

_"That's what my opiluk tells me, too. Funny how everybot keeps saying that," she mumbled as she returned to her task._

_"Perhaps it is a hint that you should take," the mech suggested lowly. The femme flashed him a cheeky grin._

_"Now where's the fun in that?"_

_Gemstone rolled her optics at her little femme. _

"_Novashine, how will you know if you do not speak with them?" she asked gently, not letting her amused smile drop from her face. She loved her youngling with all her spark, but it was times like these, times when the femling showed her opiluk's stubbornness, that made her circuits grind. The little white and blue femme simply crossed her arms and pouted._

"_Because they're mean and stupid, and I don't want to play with them," she said in her semi-squeaky, immature voice. Gemstone sighed as she knelt down so that she could address her post-sparkling youngling optic-to-optic through the fence posts that separated the play area from the rest of the park._

"_Novashine, friendship is a magical thing on Cybertron. Friends are allies and confidantes, and they can determine how successful you will ever be. A good friendship can boost your status in the Circle. A bad friendship can see you fall a caste," she explained gently to her increasingly anti-social femme creation._

"_But they all lie about other femmes, and they giggle at me and whisper when I walk by. Danni, I know they're making fun of me, and I don't wanna play with them!" the child said petulantly. Gemstone gave an exasperated groan._

"_Novashine, do you wish to be lonely for the rest of your existence? Do you wish to have nobot to talk to and play with when you grow up? Confront them now, make a stand for yourself, and prove that you are not a femme to cower before others. You are a General's creation! You can _do_ this, my spark! And I shall be here to back you up the whole time," Gemstone reasoned, making sure to make optic-contact when she delivered her promise. Novashine gave her danniluk a shrewd look, as if trying to determine whether the promise was worth anything. Finally, she decided it was. Opiluk might not have followed through, but Danniluk _never_ broke a promise. With a deep vent, Novashine straightened and put a smile on her faceplate as she glanced around the play area that was situated in the park. Her optics finally settled on a tall, lanky, blue and red mech youngling that appeared to be near her age who was playing with two action figures. With a single last glance at her danniluk, Novashine strode forward with determined steps toward her unfortunate prey._

_And one could not deny that he was prey. When he caught sight of the smaller white and blue femling headed his way, his expression transformed to a look of mild terror, and he glanced around himself frantically as if searching any other bot that she might be headed towards. Unfortunately, he was the only other bot in the vicinity, which wasn't too surprising as he chose this particular corner of the play area because of its apparent lack of sentient beings. When he realized this, he immediately rose to his pedes, stashing his action figures in a small metal mesh bag, and started moving backwards as if to escape the creature moving his way. Regrettably, he had situated himself in a corner before the femling had set her sights on him, and as such, he was trapped. Still, he pressed himself into the corner where two of the fences met as the femme came to a stop in front of him._

"_I'm Novashine," she stated succinctly. The mechling paused in his cowering and blinked as he turned his optics to the femme before him. He honestly wasn't sure what he had been expecting her to do to him, but an introduction wasn't it. Perhaps he had expected her to squish his cheek plating and coo at him as the elder femmes tended to do, or perhaps he expected her to grunt over his lanky figure like the elder mechs tended to do. Whatever the reason, he found himself lacking a response._

"_You're supposed to tell me your designation," the femme—Novashine—continued in a voice that clearly questioned his intelligence. The mechling scowled at her._

"_My designation is Orion, and contractions are sloppy! Sentinel said so!" he said irately, ever quick to defend his own honor. Novashine blinked in surprise, then abruptly grinned._

"_You're smart, not like those dummies over there," the blue and white femling stated, pointing to a group of femlings that were fawning over the tallest femling's paintjob. Orion wasn't quite sure how to respond to this, so he only gave a hesitant nod. Apparently, this was the right response, because Novashine gave him a huge smile. Orion blinked, somewhat dazzled by this expression. He'd never seen a femme his age smile at him like that before… It was kind of nice…_

"_It's decided then! You and me? We're gonna be friends!" she announced brightly. Orion grinned back and was about to respond when a loud snort of amusement cut him off. Both younglings blinked in surprise at the sudden noise before they both looked up with expressions that held confusion and curiosity at the two adult femmes that were standing nearby, both appearing to be fighting back laughter._

"You?_ Friends with the prime's ward? Oh, just wait until Daybreak gets a load of _this!" _the taller, pink femme said in a condescending voice._

"_Honestly! Look at her paintjob, Seera! I guess Gemstone couldn't afford this vorn's colors!" the shorter, rosy-hued femme responded. _

_In future cycles, Novashine would be totally convinced that her danniluk possessed a warp drive. One klik, the femmes were laughing, and the next, the rosy-hued femme was curled up on the ground, yelling obscenities as she held her leaking faceplates._

"_Don't you _ever_ make fun of my youngling or you will answer to High General Traachon in the courts! You will _not_ like my lawyer!" Gemstone roared._

"_Nor will you appreciate _mine_." The voice was deeply male, and every bot in the vicinity froze with the exception of Orion and Novashine. Novashine, for her part, cocked her helm to the side as she took in this new red mech that she had never seen before. Orion, however, grinned widely and rocketed over to the fence closest to the new mech._

"_Sentinel! You're back!" he chirped as he bounced in spot and held his arms up to his guardian. Sentinel frowned._

"_What have I told you about contractions?" the elder mech asked as he lifted the post-sparkling youngling into his arms. Orion slumped against the elder's chest plating._

"_Contractions are sloppy, and a sloppy prime means a sloppy Cybertron. I'll—_I will—_do better next time."_

"_Very good. Then perhaps you will introduce me to your new friend."_

"_Oh! This is my new best friend, Novashine!" Orion said cheerfully, carefully excluding the fact that she was his _first_ best friend. Being a shy mechling of high standing had its drawbacks._

_Novashine pasted a false smile on her face as she moved beside Sideswipe and Sunstreaker with a grace that had been ingrained into her movements since she first discovered her ability to walk. After all, it would not do for a femme of her standing to strut around like a commoner. The smile had been honest and real at the beginning of the party, if only a little strained. After a breem of introductions and false compliments and greetings, the smile had started to wane. Her danniluk gave a single, sharp warning about said dying smile, and Novashine responded by forcing the new fake smile on her face. Apparently, nobot else noticed it was fake, because they all continued to slather her with praises and congratulations._

"_Novashine, this is Mirage from the Towers District. Master Mirage, my creation, Novashine," Gemstone introduced. Mirage was a young mech, only a vorn or two older than Novashine. His plating was blue and white, polished and waxed to the utmost quality. He had a domed helm with the signature crest of the Towers mechs, and a wheel was situated on each shoulder. Novashine could tell with the sleek design that he transformed into something fast and efficient. She couldn't help but be a little jealous. Like her mother, Novashine did not have an alt mode, something that was pretty common among elitist femmes as they did not wish to get their wheels dirty or get that close to the ground. Novashine knew she had a transformation cog, she just didn't have the kibble necessary to transform, like wheels or hovertech. It was an argument that she never brought up because she knew she would lose._

"_It is a pleasure to meet you, Novashine, and I welcome you to society, officially," the mech said smoothly as he brought her right hand to his lips. Her smile became a bit more sincere when she heard twin engines rev on either side of her. Gemstone cast the two twins an exasperated look, but didn't comment. Novashine bowed her helm slightly in response to the Towers mech._

"_It is an honor and a pleasure, Master Mirage. I have heard many things about the Towers District as I have many friends who hail from that district, but I have yet to visit. Is it much different than Upper Iacon?" she asked evenly, her voice a smooth sound as she had been taught when speaking politely. Mirage smiled at the question._

"_In some ways. I believe the people there are far more polite. Not as many gossip-mongers in the Towers. We are private folk, and we try to keep our noses in our own business. We do not give out praise lightly, either, as we believe that words used too often become meaningless," he said loftily, a certain twinkle in his ice blue optics. Novashine's smile morphed into a grin._

"_I suppose that is why I prefer traveling to Kaon. The mechs there do not waste words in useless praise. Instead, they insult and tease you in the worst manners, which is a far cry better than the insipid biddies in Iacon that gossip about you behind your back," Novashine responded conspiratorily. _

"_Novashine!" Gemstone gasped, horrified at her creation's audacity, but Mirage only laughed._

"_I suppose if you can get over the foul language and cruelty, there would be something to see in military mechs. After all, you have apparently been able to tame two of your own and make one famous all at the same time," he noted with a wide grin. Novashine gave a small laugh as she looked back at Sunstreaker. _

"_I was lucky to find him. He is a mech of many talents," she said fondly. Sunstreaker snorted at this._

_**::You're gonna give this mech some very dirty ideas if you keep talking that way:: -Sunstreaker**_

_Novashine was about to respond to him when her spark suddenly pulled to the right. _

"_Novashine, what an honor to see you again."_

_His voice washed over her and—_

**MEMORY FILE DAMAGED. OUTSIDE MEDICAL ASSISTANCE REQUIRED. **

"_Sideswipe, I can't take these. Cybertonium is extremely expensive. You must have saved up for orns to afford these!"_

"_Well… You're worth the credits…"_

"_Yeah, but I can't even use them!"_

"_Nova, sweetspark, there's gonna come a day when Ratchet takes you out on a date, and you're gonna have to protect his sorry aft from getting mugged. Take the blades. Please."_

"_But I don't—Sunstreaker, I've never even _held_ blades like these before! How can you expect me to use them?"_

"_Easily. I will teach you. You simply—"_

**MEMORY FILE DAMAGED. OUTSIDE MEDICAL ASSISTANCE REQUIRED.**

"_Megatron, try again."_

"_This is pointless, femme! What will reading this pathetic piece of material do for me?"_

"_Practice makes perfect, mech."_

"_Yet as much as I practice, these words remain the same!"_

"_And you are getting better, Megatron! Nobot learns to read over a single lunar cycle! It takes time and patience!"_

"… _Very well. 'The s…syb…cyber…c-cat cybercat wah-ll-k'd to the da-t-uh-pad datapad… and turn-ed turned it on. The cybercat walked to the datapad and turned it on.' That is completely illogical! A cybercat lacks the intelligence to turn on a datapad, much less _read_ it!"_

"_Megatron, it's a story. In the story, a femme is turned into a cybercat."_

"_But that is impossible!"_

"_Hence the _story_ part."_

"_Your sarcasm is—"_

**MEMORY FILE DAMAGED. OUTSIDE MEDICAL ASSISTANCE REQUIRED.**

_"You appear to be thinking too much," Megatron purred, bring her from her thoughts, and she realized that she had not been listening to him as he read the last three lines of glyphs. "Tell me what is going on inside your mind."_

_"Nothing, Megatron. Just thinking about life in Iacon," she replied without hesitation. Megatron scowled a bit at that, but quickly schooled his features into a curious stare._

_"And what do you think of? Do you compare my living space to your own, or my language to yours?"_

_"No."_

_"Perhaps you are thinking of the battle tonight. It is, after all, one that will decide whether the twins will be transferred or not."_

_"I… Megatron, what am I to you?" Novashine asked in a straightforward manner. She needed to know what he thought of her, what she meant to him. Megatron appeared to be taken aback by her question but quickly gave her the answer he had long since been rehearsing in his processor._

_"You are my pet, my plaything. You are a femme sparked in luxury who just so happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. You are my tutor, a way to get what I desire, nothing more than a means to my own beginning."_

**MEMORY FILE DAMAGED. OUTSIDE MEDICAL ASSISTANCE REQUIRED.**

**MEDICAL OVERRIDE: KO3773-84**

**ONLINE PROTOCOLS: ACTIVATED.**

* * *

Her processor was slow to boot up, meaning she had been put under with some serious sedatives. The first thing she noticed was that she couldn't feel her right leg or either of her arms. She frowned mentally at this before consulting her last saved memory file.

Oh... she was with the Decepticons… with Megatron… Unbidden, tears came to her optics just as she onlined them. Knockout was standing over her, looking at a mech who stood on the other side of the berth. Megatron.

The Decepticon leader looked furious, something that put Novashine on edge. Bad things came from his anger. She wasn't sure how she knew, but there was a part of her processor that warned her of negative things that would come of his ire. Then her audio receptors booted up.

"Then fix it!" Megatron roared, but he went silent at the quiet gasp that came from the femme on the berth between him and his top surgeon. His optics immediately zeroed in on the small stream of energon that rolled down from underneath her visor and dripped off the side of her face into the berth beneath her. "What's wrong with her optics?! She's leaking!" Megatron demanded as he shifted his weight anxiously. Novashine felt a scan roll over her helm, and Knockout adopted a slightly pained look.

"Lord Megatron, I—um—I'm afraid that leak isn't due to a malfunction. She appears to be overly stressed, and that is making her emotional," the mech claimed.

"I'm not emotional, fragger!" Novashine burst out, though the small sob at the end of the sentence belied her claim. Knockout grimaced at the sound and chanced a glance at Megatron before saying in a hesitant voice, "I'm going to, ah, take stock, or… something. She is safe for transport, if you wish to return her to your quarters."

Megatron gave Knockout a sour look, as if blaming him for his predicament, but did not respond as the medic all but fled the room. His attention turned back to the femme that was laid out on the medberth before him. It had been a long solar cycle for him. Between dealing with new recruits, planning attacks, and dealing with the small amount of infighting that had made itself known in his base, Megatron was hurting for time and relaxation. Novashine's surgeries were simply an extra load he had to carry, and it was not an easy addition, at that.

His optics focused in on the fresh welds that speckled her frame and wondered idly how many of them would scar. Not that it mattered, seeing as she would be receiving armor to cover up the weak plating very soon. Still, though, the fact that _his_ femme had scars… his spark shuttered. The worst part of this whole situation was the welds that Knockout had discovered on her back and the welds on her chest plating near her sparkling hold. These were worst because he knew he had created those wounds in a moment of rage. It had been only a joor after the Fallen had entered his frame, and as such, Megatron had not been the most _stable_ mech at the time. Novashine's refusal to accompany him had only stoked his fury, a fury he had taken out on his femme. He spark squeezed again, as if it were feeling the pain he had inflicted on its supposed perfect match.

It was then that he realized that Novashine was giving him a strange look. Of course. He had been staring at her waist for that last fraction breem. He could understand her confusion. He returned his gaze to meet hers and opened his mouth to speak.

"Good joor, Novashine," he started. She scowled at him.

"I'm on a medberth because I was dealt damage in _your_ war. It's _not_ a good joor," she hissed, and Megatron fought back a grimace when his spark squeezed again.

"I suppose not. Very well. I will not attempt to fool you or make this situation look any better than it truly is. You belong to me. You will not leave this base, and you will not seek any close relationships with any of my mechs. Believe me when I say that the mechs on this base are far more loyal to me than they are to you," Megatron stated evenly, even as his spark roared its anger at his spoken words. Novashine gave the warlord a decidedly unimpressed look.

"You are a fool if you think that I will bow to your commands. You have slaughtered all of my friends, and once my opiluk discovers where I am—"

"Your opiluk? You think General Traachon would willingly attack my stronghold? Surely, you are not that foolish, femme."

"If not my opiluk, then my friends. You are not my only contact, Megatron, and you are not the only mech—"

"—_I hang out with in the Forge! Stop treating me like a toy!"_

"The Forge…?" Megatron asked softly, his face showing his confusion. Novashine's visor flashed as she forced herself back from the memory flux.

"Memories. I was injured in the attack on Iacon, and many of my memory files were damaged. My processor is working on fixing them, and it will keep working on them until I see a medic that specializes in coding and neural processes, the fractured memories will stay as such. At least, that's what they told me," she responded. Megatron frowned at these words.

"Perhaps Soundwave will be able to assist—"

"Soundwave? That creepy gladiator you spared? You two still, um… Could you call it talking?" Novashine questioned, memories of the faceless, silent mech easily floating to her mind. Well, perhaps that was a bit of an exaggeration. It was very likely Soundwave had a face, though it was constantly covered by a visor and facemask, and Novashine had heard him speak a few times, but the words were monotone and the sentences short. She could remember the match when he fought Megatron, too. It was a fight to the death, yet Soundwave presented Megatron with a challenge he had not experienced in more than a vorn and in doing so, gained Megatron's respect. The match ended with Megatron getting a lucky hit in that crippled Soundwave enough to make way for a killing shot, but Megatron stayed his hand. The two gained a mutual respect and a bizarre friendship from that match.

"Oh, yes. He unsettled you, didn't he?" Megatron questioned with a smirk as he gingerly lifted Novashine into his arms. Having finally received proper medical attention, Novashine could expect to be completely healed in a few joors. With a bit more rest, she would be up to a tour, and she would receive her first armor upgrade. His smirk grew as he thought of how fetching she would look in military-grade armor. He couldn't deny that the thought had crossed his processor many times in the past.

He decided to stop wasting his time in the medbay and started toward the door. He would take Novashine back to his quarters to rest, and he would see to these new recruits. He was halfway to his quarters when Novashine spoke.

"They look at me as if I am a high-grade they have never had the pleasure of tasting," she whispered, her voice carefully void of inflection. Megatron glanced down at her with his optics, not moving his helm before looking at the mechs he passed in the hallway. It was easy to see what she meant by that. He growled lowly when he caught the optic of a passing mech that gazed at _his_ femme with such a look.

"They will not touch you," he stated lowly.

"You ally yourself with murderers and villians, yet you expect them to behave like saints. I see a bit of hypocrisy there, Megatron," Novashine stated evenly. Megatron's spark shuttered a bit at the sound of his name on her glossa, but he pointedly filed it away for future examination. Perhaps this "sparkmate" business was not as false as he had hoped it to be.

"You always _were_ an impertinent little femme," he noted, gaining a sarcastic scoff from the femme in his arms.

"Now, where did you learn that word? I know _I _didn't teach it to you," she sneered. Megatron frowned.

"I have been moving amongst the top castes for the past vorn, Novashine. Surely you are not so conceited as to believe that you are the only bot to have an influence on me," Megatron said loftily.

"Then why am _I_ the femme you saved?" she questioned, her voice taking on a hard edge. Megatron mentally fumbled for an answer as he continued walking, though his face remained carefully blank. Why _had_ he saved her? Was it because of the spark pull? Was it because of his past experiences with her?

"You are the femme creation of General Traachon. You would make a useful bargaining chip," Megatron mused aloud.

"But that is not why I am here. You did not repair me so that you could torture me on screen, and besides, I doubt my opiluk cares if you keep me. I have become a bit of a disappointment to him."

"Ah, yes. You lack the ability to stay silent, and you have not yet gained a mate of good standing," Megatron observed, his voice holding no small amount of amusement.

"Yes, though I doubt a high caste mate would have changed his view of me. Ever since I started going to Kaon, his low opinion of me sank even further. Ever since I told him that Orion Pax was just a friend."

"_Orion is a perfect match! Even Sentinel has blessed the match!"_

"_Opi, it'd be so awkward! He's just my friend! I could bond with him no easier than I could with... with Blackout!"_

"_Blackout is your guardian, and he is below you."_

"_But the comparison remains. Opi, it's not something I can do."_

"—Never guess such a thing. I suppose it stands to reason, though. Your mech creator is a foolish mech."

Novashine blinked at being pulled from the memory flux, and she fought to figure out what direction the conversation had gone. Luckily, she was saved by the necessity as Megatron arrived at the door to his quarters. The door slid open, and Novashine was treated to the comical sight of her former guardian doing what he had once done many a time for her creators: sparklingsitting. Airraid and Slingshot climbed all over the seated 'copter with careless abandon, both shouting as they played out some fearsome battle. Skydive and Silverbolt were seated in the big mech's lap, leaning up against his chestplating as Skydive read _The Cybercat's Misadventure_ to Fireflight, who was curled up in his eldest brother's lap. All movement stopped, however, once Megatron stepped in the room, and a loud cry of "Danni!" rose up from all five. Skydive was the first to reach them as he was unhindered by short legs or sparkling brothers, but he was followed closely by the eldest sibling. Both shadowed Megatron's footsteps, staring up at their surrogate creator, as the last two siblings hurried over.

"Danni, what happened?" Silverbolt questioned.

"Nothing, my spark. Megatron's medics simply repaired some damage," Novashine responded easily, craning her neck around to gaze down at her eldest.

"Does tha' mean you can move your arm again?"Airraid asked loudly. Novashine grinned.

"Yep," she answered. Airraid optics widened.

"Now you're stronger than _everybot_!" he said in awe. Novashine laughed at that, smiling at her second youngest as Megatron set her down on the berth.

"I must attend to my work. Blackout will ensure your safety and make sure your needs are taken care of until I return."

Novashine looked up at Megatron one last time and frowned at his carefully blank face. _Her _Megatron was gone, though she did not completely understand just what that meant. Still, her spark turned over in her chest when the door closed behind him.

"Danni! Guess what? Blackout told us 'bout when you were a sparkling!" Slingshot exclaimed. Novashine snorted as she turned to the mech that was slowly rising to his pedes.

"Really? I bet it didn't take them long to get bored of those," she noted. Blackout grunted.

"They have attention spans that are similar to your own," he noted, though his red optics still held hesitation and anxiety. Good. Let him worry about his position in her life. He deserved as much. She would be civil to him when her sparklings were around, but that was where it would end. He was far from forgiven.

"Well, then, by all means, regale me with the stories of my past. Perhaps they will jolt some of my memories," she said loftily as she dropped an arm off the berth. Airraid and Slingshot immediately rushed over to that arm, but Airraid was the first to reach it. With skill that spoke of many moments of practice, he scaled her arm and scuttled over her body to rest under her left arm and cuddle close. Slingshot quickly followed his brother and claimed the spot under her right arm. Silverbolt then lifted the youngest mech onto the berth before crawling up himself. Fireflight claimed the spot over Novashine's spark as Skydive climbed onto the berth. The eldest two remained sitting as Blackout simply stared. It seemed surreal to see his charge covered in sparklings like that. A pointed look from Novashine pulled an awkward cough from his vocalizer before he launched into his tale, trying with all his might to ignore the accusing optics of his charge that were hidden behind a visor, a visor that would always serve as a reminder that he had failed in his oath to protect her from any and all forces that may rise up against Traachon.

* * *

At the entrance of the Decepticon base located deep in the Neutral Territories, new recruit Quickstrike grinned at the crowd of mechs in front of him. He knew without a doubt that he would advance fast if this was what he was up against. The tables were turning, and the status quo was now upset. Megatron's attack on Praxus and the Youth Sectors had hit a chord with the Cybertronians that had not previously been involved with the war. Bots now understood that this was not something that was just going to blow over, and they understood that Megatron was not a mech to be trifled with. Now, the _real war_ started.

* * *

**TheGhost129:** Thanks :)

**Chistarpax:** Lol. Yeah, Poor Nova's been stuck in limbo for a while, hasn't she. It'll still be a while before she's gets saved, though. :\ She's gonna keep with megs for a while.

**Thebookfan09: **Lol, yeah, I have fun with irony and things like that. In Megatron's defense, he didn't expect anything to happen to the Allspark (who would?). I enjoyed writing Starscream in the last chapter, too, mainly because he's still in this for the good of Cybertron. Screamer isn't treacherous yet! :D

I had so much fun writing Knockout! He's so funny! Favorite Decepticon ever! Other than Soundwave of course. ;)

And you certainly got a lot of those flashbacks in this chapter, no? ^^;

And I was about to say… Megatron's always kinda been a douche… It's in his energon.

**Luna Uchiha666: **Well, remember that the Wreckers are actually in the Decepticons right now. As military caste bots, they joined up with Megatron because they want to get rid of the caste system as well. You will see more of them next chapter, though.

And I don't really know. It's been a year now, hasn't it? I don't really know where I wanna take that story. :\ Not a good thing to work off of. I'm planning, though. Just gotta figure out where I wanna take the next chapter.

**Sunstreaker's Squishy: **We chatted via PM, but hi anyways! ^-^

**PepperCornPie: **I know right?! Vanity like that would be annoying on any other mech (aside from Sunstreaker), but with his evil personality, witty remarks, and amazing sarcasm, he makes it sexy! XD

She still looks the same. Liken it to someone getting a broken arm fixed. They still look the same. The same thing with the visor. It would be like you putting on sunglasses. Her frame is still the same, even if she'll be adding on some armor, and a well-trained ops bot would know that. :) I hope that answers the question.

And as for ratchet's sparkmate… I guess you'll find that out later, no? :)

**Agent Or4ng3: **Lol. I guess the Fallen isn't a dude you wanna chill with, is he? *shudder*

Heh, Knockout actually showed up because I was short on Decepticon medics, and I was too lazy to do the research. Besides, he was super fun to write. X)

**Razorfang: **Yeah, he's already got the contracts signed and everything. I think he's gonna start on that one once he finishes with TMNT. I think I'll see this TF just once, unless mark Wahlberg makes something of it… and just when I was starting to like Sam Witwicky, even if I wanted his girlfriends to die. :\

**Sweettea1: **Yeah, it's kinda depressing, but remember that he's under the Fallen's influence. Poor bot isn't really thinking for himself. :\

And darling! Would I tell you if something was gonna go wrong? And would I do that to my characters? Everything will go perfectly, and nothing will put a damper in the rescue plans! I never cause any of my character distress. ;)

OMG! I know, right?! I think Michael Bay is trying to play off of TF: Prime's crowd. Ntice that TF: Prime Bumblebee looks like that? Notice TF: Prime used to look like the new Optimus LA? He just doesn't understand that we don't want any humans in the movie. We hate TF humans, unless they're smart, effective, and not model gorgeous. Plus, we don't want the crude humor. Once he figures that out, he'll have a successful movie.

**Selena Snow: **XD Aw! He will! I already have it planned. :)

**Iceshadow911247: **Yeah, I heard the same thing about TF4. Well, I guess if Michael's gonna kill the movie, he might as well slaughter it, right? Go all out…

**Tflover2.0: **I'm very glad you like it, and thank you for taking the time to review. The metaphorical ride is going to be quite a bit longer with this one, so strap yourself in! Hope you liked the update! :)

* * *

And there you have it. We got a new recruit to follow around, too. I wonder how he'll tie in... I'm not even sure why I introduced him this chapter... ^^; Dramatic effect or something.

Well, I gotta go, my cookies are done, so it's time to put on my brownies! Ciao!


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